‘Will save many mothers from trauma’: Saurabh Rajput’s mother on Muskan, Sahil’s death sentence

MEERUT: A woman and her lover were sentenced to death on Wednesday for murdering her merchant navy officer husband, dismembering his body and sealing the remains in a cement-filled blue plastic drum at their Meerut home in March 2025. The verdict in the sensational ‘blue drum’ murder case that hit headlines across the country came 15 days after their conviction. It followed 126 hearings and examination of 22 prosecution witnesses. While awarding capital punishment, the judge invoked the Mahabharata, observing that “punishment is also dharma”.District and sessions judge Arvind Kumar Mishra sentenced Muskan Rastogi, 27, and her lover Sahil Shukla, 25, for murdering Muskan’s husband, Saurabh Rajput, 29. The prosecution sought the death penalty, arguing that the crime fell within the ‘rarest of rare’ category. The convicts appeared through video conferencing, while Rajput’s mother, Renu Devi, attended the proceedings in person.Prosecution lawyer KK Chaubey said the judge referred to the Mahabharata while explaining that punishing offenders in proportion to the gravity of their crimes was also a “righteous duty”. The court also imposed fines of Rs 50,000 each for murder under section 103(1) of Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) and Rs 20,000 each for causing disappearance of evidence under section 238.'Sentence will save mothers from trauma'Rajput’s family lawyer Vijay Bahadur said, “We had cited three cases of a similar nature in which the courts had given death sentences.” The slain merchant navy man’s mother broke down outside the courtroom.“My son cannot come back, but I had prayed every day for the last 18 months that they should be given the death sentence. I am thankful to Mata Rani for hearing my prayers. I am sure this kind of sentence will serve as a deterrent and will save many mothers from the trauma I have experienced,” she said.The murder took place in March 2025 at the couple’s Meerut home. Investigators said Muskan sedated Rajput before she and Sahil killed him with a sharp weapon. They subsequently dismembered his body and concealed the remains in a blue plastic drum using cement and sand. The case would eventually find notoreity across India and come to be known as the “blue drum murder”.During the trial, the prosecution presented forensic and circumstantial evidence, along with testimony concerning the purchase of the drum, cement, sand and cutting tools. The court convicted both on Sept 30.You Can Also Check: Gold Rate in Meerut | Silver Rate in Meerut | Bank Holidays in Meerut | Public Holidays in Meerut | Meerut AQI | Weather in Meerut | Petrol Price in Meerut | Diesel Price in Meerut | CNG Price in Meerut | LPG Price in MeerutStay updated with the latest Meerut news. Download the TOI App.