By Sunita Vijay
Raja and Sonam went to Meghalaya for their honeymoon, like any other newlywed couple, hoping for a beautiful start to their new life. Or so it seemed to others. But what did fate have in store for Raja?
He went missing from the Sohra (Cherrapunji) area on 23 May. His decomposed body was discovered in a deep gorge near a waterfall on 2 June, bearing brutal wounds inflicted by a sharp object. On 9 June, his wife surrendered to the police in Ghazipur, Uttar Pradesh. So far, five individuals – including Sonam and her alleged boyfriend, 20-year-old Raj Kushwaha– have been arrested and are under investigation by the Special Investigation Team (SIT) of the Meghalaya Police. They are exploring whether financial motives or other overlooked clues could have contributed to the crime.
This isn’t an isolated incident of love, betrayal, and murder. Similar cases have occurred before, but their frequency and brutality appear to be escalating. This case bears eerie resemblance to Bengaluru’s infamous “Ring Road Murder” over two decades ago, where a bride-to-be brutally killed her fiancé.
The pressing question is: why do some couples choose a path of malice when humane options might be within reach? To take a life betrays not just reason, but humanity. Whether rooted in latent violent streaks in one’s DNA, a deadened conscience, blind love, or an insatiable greed for money or motive, such heinous crimes are inexcusable and beyond justification.
I’ve been reflecting on this ever since the news broke a fortnight ago, followed by Instagram reels and reports showing a husband who willingly let his wife marry her boyfriend – just to avoid ending up in the grave at her hands.
What’s even more horrifying is the use of marriage – a sacred institution – as a veil to deceive and plot murder. Believing that the sanctity of a honeymoon would shield one from suspicion is pure folly. Such a naive act shows a complete breakdown of cognitive reasoning. This mindset can only stem from either a criminal disposition, desperation for money, or a heart ruled by obsessive love. When consumed by such desire, one can become a devil, willing to eliminate any obstacle.
Truly, love is a double-edged sword. When it turns into obsession, it can completely cloud one’s sense of right and wrong, whether directed toward a person or even material things. In this case, the investigation is still ongoing.
Love’s influence on our moral compass is largely indirect, operating through hormonal and neurological changes in the brain. While love doesn’t directly shape moral judgment, the neurochemicals released during attraction and attachment – especially serotonin – can influence our behaviour and decision-making. Serotonin levels tend to drop during the early stages of love, potentially causing obsessive thoughts about the loved one. This mirrors patterns seen in individuals with obsessive-compulsive disorder. According to the study, love impacts judgment, reduces critical thinking, and increases our “blindness” to faults.
This could explain why many mothers overlook serious flaws in their children and go to extreme lengths to protect them. Alternatively, this could even explain the “brain science” behind teenagers acting erratically, uncontrollably and at times, aggressively! Oh, the irony that love, often associated with peace and calm, is in fact spurring violence!
In essence, while love doesn’t define what is morally right or wrong, the hormonal changes it triggers can heavily influence our choices, especially in relationships involving those we care about deeply. The same emotion that brings beauty to our lives can also become our worst enemy, especially when underlying psychiatric conditions are present. To gain a legal practitioner’s perspective, we reached out to Bhuvanyaa Vijay, practising as a criminal and immigration attorney in the US, with international case dealings, who comments: “While not all killings rise to the level of murder, ending one’s husband’s life in collusion with hitmen is surely not a crime of ‘heat of passion’ to be excepted from murder. The Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, like many global legal systems, allows the insanity defence in cases where the mind is demonstrably unsound. However, we must tread cautiously when biological impulses, such as hormonal hijack or emotional dysregulation, are invoked to blur the lines of criminal intent. These influences may explain behaviour, but they should not excuse it. Allowing such defences too readily risks diluting culpability and inadvertently granting impunity in crimes born of obsession, control, or rage – often with premeditation. Astute legal professionals distinguish between a mind that is clinically incapable of discerning right from wrong, and one that deliberately silences conscience in pursuit of desire. The criminal psyche is often cunning, not confused.”
The true motive behind the Meghalaya honeymoon murder case remains to be discovered. However, as society progresses, violent behaviour appears to be on the rise. Is it the pervasive influence of social media, connecting people with hidden agendas and fostering fake associations? Or is it the radiation from countless electronic gadgets and signal towers distorting brain function? Perhaps the stress of modern life and peer pressure to succeed are fuelling anxiety and frustration, making us more vulnerable. Or maybe we’re gradually evolving into selfish, even sinister beings. One could also point to movies and OTT platforms that glorify violence, subtly corrupting our minds, and normalising frightening standards of aggression.
Undeniably, the constant flood of toxic ideas and violent imagery in our subconscious is altering our behaviour in troubling ways. Day in, day out, and most times, involuntarily, we are bombarded with a sea of triggers. Only careful and detailed studies can reveal the true breadth and depth of such psychosomatic factors.
Whether this murder stemmed from a love triangle or another motive remains to be seen. But what’s truly alarming is the increasing prevalence of infidelity, obsession, and violent tendencies, causing many to lose their basic sense of right and wrong. As the SIT continues to unravel the threads of this gruesome crime, one thing is certain: our society must confront the unsettling truth that love, when untethered from empathy and ethics, can mutate into something terrifying. The onus now lies on us, not just the law, to recognise the red flags, foster emotional awareness, and prevent such tragedies before they unfold. After all, love should be a sanctuary, not a sentence.
