In a high-profile criminal case that has gripped public attention across northern India, a 26-year-old woman and her male romantic partner have received death penalty sentences following their conviction for the brutal killing of the woman’s husband. The verdict, delivered on September 30 by a sessions court in the city of Meerut in Uttar Pradesh state, brings a key milestone to the case that has become widely known as the ‘blue drum murder’, named for the large blue plastic storage container where the victim’s remains were discovered after the killing.
The convicted pair are Muskan Rastogi, the wife of deceased Saurabh Rajput, and her co-accused lover Sahil Shukla, aged 28. The murder was carried out on March 3, 2025, when Rajput – who worked full-time in London – was visiting his family in Meerut. Court documents from the prosecution lay out a long-running context for the crime: Rastogi and Shukla first became close as school classmates, and their romantic relationship developed while Rajput was living abroad for work.
When Rajput first uncovered the affair in 2021, he moved forward with plans to file for divorce. But pressure from his extended family, who cited the couple’s young daughter as a reason to preserve the marriage, convinced him to abandon the divorce proceedings. Years later, during his 2025 visit home, Rastogi allegedly served Rajput food laced with sedatives before the pair carried out the killing, according to Meerut Police official accounts.
Following the murder, Rastogi and Shukla fled the state to hide out in Himachal Pradesh, in northern India’s Himalayan region. To cover up their crime, they continued using Rajput’s mobile phone to send fake text messages to his family, claiming he was away on a work trip and in good health. For several days, the ruse held, but Rajput’s family soon grew suspicious of his extended absence and filed a missing person report with local law enforcement.
The case broke open when Rastogi returned to Meerut from Himachal Pradesh to visit her own parents on March 17. During the visit, the couple’s six-year-old daughter asked Rastogi where her father was. When Rastogi attempted to shift blame for Rajput’s disappearance onto her in-laws, her own parents were unconvinced by her account. They ultimately took Rastogi directly to a local police station for questioning, where she confessed to her role in the killing. Within days, both Rastogi and Shukla were taken into custody and formally charged with murder.
In statements to media following the September 30 verdict, relatives on both sides of the case spoke out about the crime. Rajput’s brother told BBC Hindi that his sibling had been killed at the hands of unnecessarily cruel perpetrators. Even Rastogi’s own family has called for the harshest possible penalty. In a comment to Indian news agency ANI, Rastogi’s father said, ‘My daughter, along with a friend, murdered her husband in her own home. She is not fit for this society and is a danger to others.’
Under India’s legal system, the death sentence handed down by the lower Meerut court cannot be carried out until it receives formal confirmation from the Uttar Pradesh High Court. Both convicted defendants also retain the legal right to file an appeal challenging the guilty verdict and the sentence. Notably, Rastogi has given birth to a second child while being held in jail awaiting trial. The case remains ongoing through the appeal and confirmation process.