Securing the lives of Indian expat workers

Shahzadi Khan, an Indian caregiver from Uttar Pradesh, was executed in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) on February 15.

- Rejimon Kuttappan

Shahzadi Khan, an Indian caregiver from Uttar Pradesh, was executed in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) on February 15. A day before her execution, on February 14, she made a final call to her father Shabbir Khan, informing him that she was being transferred from the prison where she had been incarcerated to another facility.

Desperate to save his daughter, Shabbir Khan ran from pillar to post, pleading for help. But it was too late by then—what had to happen, happened. Shahzadi was executed.

The heartbreaking part was that her father wasn't informed in person. Instead, on February 28—nearly two weeks later—Shabbir received a cold, impersonal text message from an Abu Dhabi number, confirming that his daughter had been put to death. This revelation came only after a petition was filed in the Delhi high court on February 21.

It was only on March 4, when the ministry of external affairs (MEA) responded to the court, that the truth was officially acknowledged.

Ali Mohammed, the family's legal counsel, said that the Indian government knew about the events but did not share the news with the family. The government and its diplomatic channels not only failed to intervene but also acted in a very callous manner by not informing the anxious parent of their child's fate so that they could grieve her passing.