THE Meerut district court on Wednesday held Muskan Rastogi and Sahil Shukla guilty of the murder of merchant navy officer Saurabh Rajput in the sensational “Blue Drum” murder case, bringing the trial to an end after 13 months and 126 hearings. The court will announce its order on punishment after 15 days. Government counsel Krishna Kumar Chaubey said the court, while convicting the two, referred to a Supreme Court order, stressing strict punishment in serious crime cases. “The court has held Muskan Rastogi and Sahil Shukla guilty of the murder of Saurabh Rajput and, while referring to a Supreme Court order, observed that perpetrators of such heinous and serious crimes should receive appropriate punishment so that a message goes out in society that the rule of law prevails,” Chaubey told reporters. Sahil and Muskan joined the hearing virtually from a local jail where they are lodged The counsel said the next stage would concern the quantum of sentence and the two convicts would be allowed to present their submissions before the court.

 

“This is the beauty of our legal system that even an accused is given an opportunity to present his or her version before the court in relation to the sentence,” Chaubey said. He said the court is competent to award the death penalty, but the final decision on punishment rests with the judge. The prosecution has sought the maximum punishment for the accused, citing the nature of the crime and the evidence presented during the trial. According to Chaubey, the prosecution examined 22 witnesses, including those connected with the purchase of the blue drum, which has since become emblematic of violent infidelity. “The 22 witnesses who were useful for proving our prosecution case were examined. These included the medicine seller, the person from whom the drum was purchased, the person from whom cement was purchased and the person connected with the purchase of the knife and utensils,” he said. Hotel managers were examined along with records to establish the accused persons’ stay at different locations, while cab drivers were interrogated about their movements, he said. The case relates to the March 2025 killing of Saurabh Rajput, Muskan’s husband, in Meerut.