From Meghalaya murder to Meerut blue drum: 2025’s most shocking marital betrayal crimes

• India saw a rise in deadly marital betrayal and contract killings in 2025
• Cases in Meghalaya, UP, Rajasthan, and Haryana spark national outrage
• Police uncover gruesome details of murders by spouses and lovers.

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As 2025 draws to a close, India saw a series of chilling crime stories that exposed the dark underbelly of domestic life. From Meghalaya to Uttar Pradesh and Rajasthan, tales of marital betrayal turned deadly dominated headlines.

These cases, often involving one partner plotting with lovers to eliminate the other partner, sparked national outrage and debates on trust, infidelity, and the rise of contract killings.

What made these incidents particularly shocking was their frequency and savagery. Police across states uncovered a wave of such crimes, where newlyweds or long-suffering partners orchestrated murders with precision.

Meghalaya honeymoon horror

The year’s most sensational case erupted in Meghalaya’s East Khasi Hills. Sonam Raghuvanshi, a newlywed from Uttar Pradesh, allegedly masterminded the murder of her husband Raja Raghuvanshi, an Indore-based businessman, during their honeymoon.

The couple went missing after their May 11 wedding, only for Raja’s decomposing body to surface in a gorge near a waterfall on June 2. Police allege Sonam and her lover, Raj Kushwaha, orchestrated the plot for financial gain, leading to arrests, a massive 790-page charge sheet against five accused, and ongoing trial proceedings.

Meerut blue drum case

Saurabh Rajput, a 32-year-old former Merchant Navy officer, was allegedly murdered by his wife, Muskan Rastogi, and her lover, Sahil Shukla, on March 4. The case sent shockwaves nationwide after police revealed that Rajput’s body was dismembered into 15 pieces and concealed inside a sealed blue drum filled with cement at his residence in Meerut’s Brahmpuri locality on March 19.

Investigators said the accused drugged Rajput before attacking him with a butcher’s knife, stabbing him repeatedly in the chest and slitting his throat. The crime came to light after Rajput’s six-year-old daughter told her grandmother, “Papa is in the drum,” leading to their arrest.

Both accused are currently lodged in Meerut jail under judicial custody. Meanwhile, Muskan gave birth to a girl child and named her Radha even as her in-laws demanded a DNA test of the child.

Auraiya's killer bride

A 25-year-old man, Dilip Yadav, was allegedly murdered by a contract killer hired by his wife, Pragati Yadav, along with her lover, in Uttar Pradesh’s Auraiya district, barely 15 days after the couple’s marriage.

The two were married on March 5. Police said that within days of the wedding, Pragati conspired with her longtime boyfriend, Anurag, whom she had been in a relationship with for the past four years, to eliminate her husband.

Dilip was found critically injured in a wheat field and was rushed to hospital. As his condition deteriorated, he was shifted to multiple medical facilities but later died. The post-mortem examination revealed that he had been shot in the head with a .315-bore pistol.

Bhiwani influencer's deadly secret

Haryana's Bhiwani saw social media fame collide with crime. Influencer Ravina, boasting 34,000 Instagram followers, strangled husband Praveen with her dupatta on March 25 after he discovered her online affair with Suresh.

The husband, identified as Praveen, found out about their affair and caught them in a compromising situation, which led to a verbal altercation that turned violent, with Ravina allegedly choking Praveen to death with her dupatta.

A CCTV video showed them putting Praveen's body between them and riding a bike to drain it away. However, the body was recovered three days later. The police established the link and sent them to prison after they confessed.

Sambhal’s affair, murder and dismemberment

The latest such case was reported from Uttar Pradesh’s Sambhal district, where a woman and her alleged lover were arrested for murdering her husband and dismembering his body using a wood grinder.

According to police, Ruby, a resident of Mohalla Chunni in the Chandousi area, filed a missing complaint on November 18, claiming her husband Rahul (38) had not returned home.

Nearly a month later, on December 15, police recovered a mutilated body from a drain near the Eidgah area, missing the head, hands, and legs, with the name “Rahul” found written on it.

During investigation, Ruby allegedly confessed to killing Rahul with her lover Gaurav after being caught in an illicit relationship. Police said Rahul was beaten to death with iron objects, after which the body was cut into pieces and disposed of in a drain and the Ganga River.