Soon after a crime in Meerut, Uttar Pradesh, Muskaan Rastogi and her accomplice, Sahil Shukla, left on a 15-day journey to the hills. The two reportedly ordered a birthday cake and indulged in wine while visiting well-known tourist destinations like Shimla and Manali, only hours after they allegedly killed and mutilated her husband, Saurabh Rajput.

Ajab Singh, Rastogi’s taxi driver, was quoted in the NDTV story as saying that the pair was abnormally silent throughout the trip. “At the time, I was unaware of the murder. I took them up for a 15-day journey on the evening of March 4. Muskaan often got out of the vehicle to answer calls from her mother, and they didn’t talk much,” Singh said.

Muskaan asked the driver to get a birthday cake for Sahil in an audio message when they were in Shimla. “She requested that I keep the cake in her room and declare it to be for me. She demanded that I contact her whether I was able to get it,” he clarified.

According to Singh, the two of them often drank alcohol, with Sahil consuming at least two bottles every day. “I didn’t realise Muskaan also drank until I saw her buy alcohol on our way back to Meerut,” he said. For their journey, which included stopping at a gurudwara in Shimla and refueling the vehicle, the driver received payment of Rs 54,000.

Muskaan and Sahil are accused of repeatedly stabbing her husband Saurabh on March 4, dismembering his corpse, and hiding the remains in a cement barrel. While on vacation, they sent SMS using Saurabh’s phone to deceive his family. Muskaan confessed to her mother, revealing the horrific details of the murder, and they were arrested on March 18. After getting married in 2016, Saurabh and Muskaan have a daughter who is six years old.

According to the autopsy doctors, Saurabh was brutally attacked since he had three severe stab wounds to the heart. An effort to fit him inside the drum was evident from the tremendous brutality shown by his corpse, which included damaged limbs and a decapitated skull.