New Delhi, March 4 — A 33-year-old Indian woman on death row in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) was executed on February 15 for allegedly killing a four-month-old baby, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) informed the Delhi High Court on Monday.
Shahzadi Khan, a caregiver from Uttar Pradesh’s Banda district, was sentenced to death in July 2023, but her family only learned of her execution when the Indian Embassy in Abu Dhabi was formally notified on February 28. Her father, Shabbir Khan, had been seeking urgent information about her whereabouts, unaware that his daughter had already been executed.
Khan approached the Delhi High Court, pleading for details about his daughter’s status. During the hearing, Additional Solicitor General (ASG) Chetan Sharma disclosed that Shahzadi had been executed under UAE law. The court, calling it a “sad and unfortunate” incident, disposed of the plea. Her cremation is scheduled for March 5 in Abu Dhabi.
Shahzadi was arrested in February 2023 after her employer’s infant son died on December 7, 2022, shortly after receiving a routine vaccination. A video surfaced in December 2023, showing her confessing, but her father alleged the confession was obtained under duress. He also claimed the child’s parents refused a postmortem and signed a waiver preventing further investigation.
Her appeal was rejected in September 2023, and on February 28, 2024, the UAE court upheld her death sentence. A final mercy petition filed by her father in May 2024 was also denied.
A day before her execution, Shahzadi called her father, hinting it might be their last conversation. On February 20, Shabbir sought help from the MEA, but by the time an official response came, she had already been executed.
