Meerut, October 24 — Muskan Rastogi and Sahil Shukla, who were awarded the death penalty in the Saurabh Rajput murder case in Meerut — widely known as the 'blue drum case' — have challenged the verdict of the Meerut district court before the Allahabad High Court, news agency ANI reported on Saturday. The two convicts have filed a joint appeal through their advocates, seeking the quashing of their convictions and the death sentence.
Source: ANI via Khelja
The District and Sessions Court in Meerut convicted both on September 30, 2026, and on October 14 awarded them the death penalty, describing the murder as a case falling in the 'rarest of rare' category. The court also imposed a fine of Rs 50,000 each. Both were convicted under Section 103(1), read with Section 3(5), of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita for murder, and Section 238(a) for destruction of evidence, and were also sentenced in connection with the destruction of evidence.
The case pertains to Meerut's Brahmpuri area. According to the prosecution case, after Saurabh Rajput was murdered in March 2025, his body was placed inside a blue plastic drum and cement and concrete were filled into the drum to conceal the body. After the case came to light, it attracted widespread attention across Uttar Pradesh. Following an investigation, police arrested Muskan Rastogi and Sahil Shukla, and the trial was conducted before a court in Meerut.
In their appeal, the convicts have argued — as appellants' submissions that the High Court is yet to decide — that the prosecution failed to prove the charges beyond reasonable doubt, that the case was based entirely on circumstantial evidence, and that the trial court delivered its conviction without properly evaluating the evidence and applicable legal principles. The appeal also claims contradictions in witness statements relating to the purchase of the weapon, cement and drum, says CCTV footage and valid receipts for those purchases were not produced, and raises the absence of independent witnesses' signatures on recovery documents, alleged irregularities in videography, and the non-availability of certificates required for electronic evidence.
Source: Particle News
The appeal names senior advocate Sushil Shukla and advocates Nidhi Trivedi, Ravitendra Pratap Singh Chandel and Sandeep Kumar Dubey. The appellants have urged the court to set aside the conviction order passed on September 30 and the death sentence awarded on October 14. The matter is likely to come up for hearing before a Division Bench of the Allahabad High Court next week.