Meerut blue drum murder case: court to rule today on Muskan Rastogi and Sahil Shukla
A Meerut district court will decide on September 30 whether Muskan Rastogi and Sahil Shukla are guilty of murdering merchant navy officer Saurabh Rajput.
The "blue drum" murder case from Brahmapuri in Meerut, Uttar Pradesh, is back in the headlines. The district court is due to pronounce its verdict today, September 30. It will decide whether the accused, Muskan Rastogi and Sahil Shukla, are guilty of the murder of merchant navy officer Saurabh Rajput. If both are held guilty, the sentence will be heard separately.
Final arguments in the case concluded on September 17. The prosecution argued against both accused on the basis of circumstantial evidence, witness statements and other evidence that emerged in the investigation. The prosecution has sought the death penalty for both.
The prosecution had statements of 22 witnesses recorded. They include Saurabh Rajput's brother Babloo, his mother and a friend. The owners of the shops from which the drum, medicines, knives, cement and sand were bought also deposed in court. Evidence linked to the places the accused visited after the murder was also placed before the court.
The prosecution says the 22 witnesses gave statements against Muskan and Sahil. It claims the investigation found evidence that knives, a razor, cement, sand and a large blue drum were bought.
The condition of the scene was also placed before the court through testimony from the police and the forensic team. The investigation found bloodstains in the room. It is alleged that the body was cut into pieces and hidden in a blue drum filled with cement. The prosecution claims the post-mortem report makes clear that sharp weapons were used.
According to the prosecution, Saurabh Rajput returned to Meerut from London on February 24, 2025, and reached his home in Indiranagar. Muskan Rastogi's birthday was celebrated on February 25, and their daughter's birthday on February 28.
The prosecution says Saurabh was given a sleeping drug on March 3, 2025. Muskan then called her alleged lover, Sahil Shukla, to the house. It is alleged that Saurabh was killed in that house. The investigation is said to have found that after the murder the body was cut into pieces and hidden in a large blue drum filled with cement.
It is alleged that on March 4, Muskan left her daughter at her parents' home and went to Shimla with Sahil. The investigation also found that during this time messages were sent from Saurabh's phone to his family so that they would stay confused. As a result, it took the family some time to realise that Saurabh was missing.
The murder came to light on March 17, 2025, after the two returned from Shimla. When police began their investigation, they said they recovered Saurabh Rajput's body parts from the blue drum kept in the house. Police then arrested Muskan and Sahil. The trial lasted about 13 months, with hearings on 126 dates and statements of 22 witnesses recorded. With final arguments now over, the Meerut district court will decide on September 30 whether the accused are guilty. If guilt is established, the question of sentence will be heard further.
