The blue drum has become the chilling symbol of two murder cases separated by nearly seven years. Last week, a Meerut court sentenced Muskan Rastogi and her lover Sahil Shukla to death for killing Muskan’s husband, hiding his body in a blue plastic drum and attempting to dispose of it.
In Kanpur, a strikingly similar case dates back to December 2019, when Wasim Ahmad, 32, was allegedly murdered and his body stuffed into a drum in a locked rented room in Saadh, Ghatampur. The accused, Chandni, a transgender person who was in a relationship with Wasim, remains at large.
Kanpur case predates Meerut murder, but priority remains unclear
The Kanpur case appears to predate the Meerut murder as an instance of a body being concealed in a blue drum, although available records do not establish whether it was the first such case. What links the two is the contrast between the death sentence handed down in Meerut and the long wait for justice in Wasim’s case.
Wasim was allegedly hacked to death by Chandni. His body was pushed headfirst into a 100-litre plastic drum, with the legs protruding, and left inside the locked room. It was discovered nearly 20 days later, when a foul smell prompted the landlord, Zakir Hussain, to alert the police. A bloodstained cleaver was recovered from the room.
{{/usCountry}}Wasim was allegedly hacked to death by Chandni. His body was pushed headfirst into a 100-litre plastic drum, with the legs protruding, and left inside the locked room. It was discovered nearly 20 days later, when a foul smell prompted the landlord, Zakir Hussain, to alert the police. A bloodstained cleaver was recovered from the room.
{{/usCountry}}Chandni had been living in a rented room in Zakir’s house in Saadh since around September 2018. Wasim worked in Surat and would return to Kanpur from time to time to stay with Chandni. He also had a family in Jajmau, where his wife and two children lived.
Accounts from the time suggested that the relationship had become strained after a third person entered the picture.
Also read: Woman, partner sentenced to death in ‘blue drum’ murder case
Zakir says Chandni left after household belongings were sold
According to Zakir, Chandni left about 20 days before the body was discovered. The household belongings had also been sold to a scrap dealer before the departure.
Ravi Srivastava, the inspector who handled the case at the time, said Chandni had been on the run despite searches at several places.
Ravindra Kumar Singh, who handled the case as SHO Saadh in 2021, said police teams travelled to several states, but Chandni appears to have planned the crime meticulously and covered their tracks well.
Several investigating officers have handled the case since then, but Chandni has not been arrested.