Muskan, Sahil Convicted In Meerut ‘Blue Drum’ Murder Case
Court Finds Couple Guilty After 13-Month Trial; Sentence To Be Decided Separately
A Meerut district court on Wednesday convicted Muskan Rastogi and her lover Sahil Shukla of murdering former Merchant Navy officer Saurabh Rajput in the sensational “Blue Drum” murder case.
District Judge Arvind Kumar Mishra held the two guilty after a trial that lasted around 13 months and involved 126 hearings and testimony from 22 prosecution witnesses. Arguments on the quantum of sentence will be heard separately.
Government counsel Krishna Kumar Chaubey said the court, while convicting the two, referred to a Supreme Court order and stressed that perpetrators of serious crimes should receive appropriate punishment.
“The court has held Muskan Rastogi and Sahil Shukla guilty of the murder of Saurabh Rajput,” Chaubey told reporters, adding that the court observed that punishment in heinous crimes should reinforce the rule of law. Muskan and Sahil joined Wednesday’s hearing virtually from the local jail where they are lodged.
According to the prosecution, 29-year-old Rajput was allegedly drugged and stabbed to death by Muskan and Sahil at his Meerut residence in March 2025. His body was subsequently dismembered and concealed inside a blue plastic drum filled with cement and sand.
The crime came to light after Rajput’s remains were recovered from the sealed drum at the house. Police later arrested Muskan and Sahil, who had allegedly fled to Himachal Pradesh following the murder.
During the trial, the prosecution relied on circumstantial, forensic and technical evidence, including testimony from witnesses linked to the alleged purchase of the drum, cement, sand and other materials. Call-detail records and mobile tower locations were also cited to establish Sahil’s presence at the residence and the movements of the accused after the murder.
The prosecution sought stringent punishment, including the death penalty, while the defence argued that there was no eyewitness to the murder and sought relief for the accused. The case, which came to light in March 2025, drew widespread public attention and anger. Security was tightened around the Meerut court complex ahead of Wednesday’s verdict.
