Head severed, hands cut off, legs bent back: Autopsy reveals savagery of Meerut killing
MEERUT: The post-mortem of former merchant navy officer Saurabh Rajput has revealed the extreme brutality with which he was killed and the body dismembered allegedly by his wife Muskan Rastogi and her lover Sahil Shukla.
His head was severed from the body, both hands were cut off from the wrist and his legs were bent backwards, suggesting an attempt to fit the body in a drum, the autopsy report disclosed. The cause of death has been attributed to shock and excessive bleeding.
Rajput was allegedly drugged and then stabbed to death by his wife and her lover on March 4, his body dismembered and sealed inside a drum with cement. The duo then went on a vacation to Himachal Pradesh, all the while misleading Rajput's family by sending them messages from his phone.
The couple introduced themselves as husband and wife, checked into a hotel in Kasol on March 10, stayed for six days, and left on March 16.
Their driver accompanied them, said hotel operator Aman Kumar on Saturday.
Usually, tourists come to Kasol to see new places and enjoy the scenic beauty of the place, but this couple stayed in their room (203) the whole day and only went out once a day in the car, which was unusual, he said.
They did not meet anybody, did not allow hotel staff to clean the room and had minimum interaction with the staff, Aman Kumar said, adding that during check out, the couple told the hotel operator that they had come from Manali and would go back to Uttar Pradesh.
The matter was reported to police on March 18, following which Muskan and Sahil were arrested.
Doctors who conducted the post-mortem reported that Rajput was stabbed in the heart with extreme force thrice, indicating a sustained and violent attack. "The blows from the sharp long knife pierced deep inside the heart," one of the doctors said.
Superintendent of Police (City) Ayush Vikram Singh confirmed the postmortem findings. "Muskaan brutally stabbed Saurabh in his heart, puncturing it. His neck was severed and both palms were cut off. The body was cut up into four pieces to fit it in the drum," the officer said.
The medical team further detailed the gruesome attempt to conceal the body.
"It was put in the drum and then filled with dust and cement. The body solidified in the cement and did not rot due to lack of air. The smell was not extremely foul," a member of the post-mortem team disclosed.
The drum had to be cut open and the hardened cement painstakingly removed to retrieve the body.
Muskan and Rajput got married in 2016 against his family's wishes, following a relationship and they had a six-year-old daughter. Muskan and Sahil had known each other since school and reconnected via a WhatsApp group in 2019, police said.
Rajput's family has claimed that Muskan's behaviour was concerning from the beginning as she neglected household duties and allegedly took to drugs.
A senior police officer Saturday said they would seek to put up Muskan Rastogi and Shukla, on trial in a fast-track court to secure a swift conviction in the case.
Senior Superintendent of Police Vipin Tada told PTI that the police will prioritise filing a charge sheet in the case as quickly as possible.
"We will try to run the case in a fast-track court so that the accused get punishment as soon as possible," he said, adding police will seek to take Muskan and Sahil in their custody once their 14-day judicial custody ends.
Deputy Inspector General of Police (Meerut Zone) Kalanidhi Naithani has directed the force to conduct a thorough investigation, file a charge sheet promptly and ensure strong prosecution to secure severe punishment.
As part of the investigation, now overseen by an inspector and monitored by an assistant superintendent of police, statements of vendors who sold the knife, drum and cement were being recorded.
Meanwhile, a video has been circulating on social media purportedly showing Muskan and Sahil dancing to music at a party.
"In the video, both are seen dancing to DJ music at a party while drenched in the colours of Holi," a police source said.
The source said Muskan's online chats and audio she exchanged with the driver of the cab in which she and her lover travelled to Himachal Pradesh were also circulated widely on social media.
"One such video showed Muskan had sent an audio message to the cab driver through WhatsApp, asking him to bring a cake," the police source added.
Muskan and Rajput got married in 2016 against his family's wishes, following a relationship and they had a six-year-old daughter.
Muskan and Sahil had known each other since school and reconnected via a WhatsApp group in 2019, police said.