The murder of Saurabh Rajput, allegedly orchestrated by his wife Muskan Rastogi and her lover Sahil Shukla, has exposed a dark and chilling tale of deceit, betrayal, and cold-blooded planning. New details reveal the extent to which Muskan manipulated everyone around her — from Saurabh’s family to their neighbors — to maintain the illusion that her husband was still alive, all while hiding his brutalized body in their home.
Muskan, pretending to be Saurabh, sent WhatsApp messages to his sister, engaging in casual conversations about returning home for Holi celebrations and exchanging festive greetings. This ruse worked initially, keeping suspicions at bay. However, when Saurabh’s sister tried repeatedly to call him and got no response, her instincts told her something was amiss.
The most heart-wrenching part of this case is the innocent testimony from the couple’s five-year-old daughter. Unaware of the gravity of her words, she reportedly told neighbors, "Papa drum mein hain" ("Papa is inside the drum"). This innocent statement, later confirmed by Saurabh’s devastated mother, pointed authorities toward the grim truth. His mother believed the child might have witnessed part of the horrific crime but was too young to fully understand what had happened.
Adding to the family’s anguish, Saurabh’s mother accused Muskan’s entire family of being complicit in the crime. She claimed they sought legal counsel before informing the police — a move she believes was intended to cover their tracks and manipulate the narrative. According to her, Muskan’s mother pretended to be unaware of the murder, only to later frame the situation as if Muskan had confessed in a fit of guilt. The grieving mother expressed outrage, saying the entire family, along with Sahil, deserved the harshest punishment.
Police investigations pieced together the gruesome sequence of events. On March 4, the day Saurabh was last seen alive, Muskan allegedly spiked his food with sedatives, ensuring he was unconscious. She then called Sahil to their home. Together, they stabbed Saurabh in the chest with a butcher’s knife, and when that wasn’t enough, they slit his throat to ensure he was dead. To make the body easier to hide, they dismembered him, severing his hands. The next day, the duo bought a large plastic drum, cement, and sand from a nearby market. They stuffed his remains into the drum, sealed it, and stashed it inside the very house Saurabh and Muskan shared.
In a shocking twist, Muskan and Sahil didn’t lay low after the murder. Instead, they went on a holiday to a hill station, reportedly Himachal Pradesh. Muskan locked the house and lied to neighbors, saying she and Saurabh were leaving for a vacation together. During this time, she continued messaging Saurabh’s family using his phone to cover her tracks, trying to convince them that everything was normal.
The truth finally emerged when Muskan’s mother approached the police, claiming her daughter had confessed to the crime. Under interrogation, Muskan and Sahil broke down and admitted to everything — from the sedative-laced meal to the brutal stabbing and the gruesome disposal of Saurabh’s body.
Investigators uncovered another tragic layer to the story: Saurabh, who recently returned from London, had told his family he worked in the Merchant Navy. In reality, he was employed at a bakery. He and Muskan had a love marriage in 2016, and they have been living in a rented home with their daughter for the past three years. Friends described him as a devoted father and a man who dreamed of a better life for his family.
Muskan’s father, Pramod Rastogi, came forward with a startling revelation. He claimed his daughter had fallen into drug addiction, allegedly introduced to substances by Sahil during their affair. According to him, Saurabh tried to intervene and stop Muskan from using drugs, which led to frequent fights between the couple. Pramod claimed Muskan told him she "couldn’t live without drugs" and admitted that Saurabh’s attempts to save her from addiction were one of the reasons she wanted him gone.
Perhaps the most gut-wrenching part of Pramod’s statement was his belief that his daughter deserved to face the harshest punishment for what she had done. "She should be hanged," he said bluntly, his voice heavy with both sorrow and anger.
This horrifying case has left the local community in disbelief — not only because of the savagery of the murder but also because of the calculated way Muskan and Sahil covered their tracks. From the fake vacation story to the misleading messages and the heartless act of leaving Saurabh’s body sealed in a drum while they vacationed, every detail points to a crime driven by addiction, betrayal, and a chilling lack of remorse.
Authorities are now investigating whether anyone else helped Muskan and Sahil, directly or indirectly, in hiding the crime or misleading the family. The police are also reviewing Sahil’s background to uncover if he has a history of similar criminal behavior.
As the legal proceedings begin, Saurabh’s family is demanding the harshest punishment possible — not just for Muskan and Sahil but for anyone who may have aided them. For now, the focus remains on ensuring justice for Saurabh and his young daughter, whose life has been irreversibly shattered by the horrific betrayal of her mother.
