What Happened To Shehzadi, The Indian Woman Executed In The UAE ?
Abu Dhabi, UAE: The United Arab Emirates (UAE) on Monday, March 2, informed the Indian Embassy that it had executed Shehzadi Sabbeer Khan, a caregiver from Uttar Pradesh’s Banda district who was convicted to death in 2024 for alleged murder of a four-month-old infant.
The family is shocked to hear about the news of her execution since the 33-year-old Shehzadi had talked to her family over the phone earlier on February 15, the same day of her execution in Abu Dhabi.
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On Monday, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) informed the Delhi High Court about the execution, during a hearing on family’s petition seeking information about Shehzadi’s well-being. When she was asked about her final wish, she expressed her desire to speak to her parents, and with the authorities’ permission, she called her family, stating that “it was her last call,” The Wion quoted her brother Shamsher.
What Is The Case
An unmarried woman and youngest of three daughters of Shabbir and his wife Nazra Begum, Shehzadi went to Abu Dhabi in December 2021 and started working as a caregiver for her employer, according to a petition filed by her father. Shahjadi was caregiving an infant who died on December 7, 2022, after receiving routine vaccinations. It is alleged that despite a hospital’s recommendation for a postmortem, the parents refused and signed a waiver.
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Surprisingly, a video allegedly showed Shahzadi confessing to the crime in February 2023. However, Shehzadi reportedly claimed that the confession was coerced through intimidation and torture by her employer and their family. Following the confession, Shehzadi was arrested on February 10, 2023, and sentenced to death on July 31 the same year.
According to Shehzadi’s family, a person named Uzair, also known as Panna Chaudhary, from Agra, came in contact with her and lured her with the promise of a well-paying job at his uncle Faiz and aunt Nazia’s home in Abu Dhabi. Uzair also convinced her that she could also receive better treatment for her burn injuries there. When she was six, Shahjadi had suffered severe burn injuries on her face and other parts of her body, leaving its marks in the effected areas.
Nazia gave birth to a baby, and Shehzadi was working as the child’s caretaker in the couple’s Abu Dhabi home. In 2022, the infant died four months old. A few months later, Faiz and Nazia accused Shehzadi of murdering their child, which she was seen confessing to in a video. Shehzadi’s family alleged that it was a forced confession.
After being sentenced to death, Shehzadi’s appealed for mercy but it was rejected in September 2023, and the sentence was upheld on February 28, 2024. She had been imprisoned in Abu Dhabi’s Al Wathba prison since 2023. Her father, Sabbeer Khan, had repeatedly appealed to the central and state authorities for help, claiming she was falsely implicated in the case, alleging that Shehzadi was wrongfully accused of murder.
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Family’s Futile Efforts To Save Shahjadi
After learning of the execution of Shehzadi, a family member said that they had no choice but to approach the Delhi High Court, since no authorities came forward to assist them. “We have been tirelessly reaching out to local, state, and central authorities for help. We all failed to save her,” the Indian Express quoted as the family member is saying. After her appeal got rejected last year, Shehzadi informed the family that she could be executed anytime. Meanwhile, the family also advanced their efforts to save her.
Hearing the news, many are criticising the government for not extending help to a woman trapped in the death row. Given the country’s political clout, which has witnessed in relieving top former Indian Navy officials from Qatar jail after sentenced to death, the country could have saved the woman, several similar remarks came up on social media.
Meanwhile, the MEA stated that the Indian Embassy had extended all possible legal assistance, including filing mercy petitions and pardon requests with the UAE government. A family member has said that they will approach the External Affairs Ministry to bring the dead body back to India, as per the reports.
