In 2021, Shahzadi Khan, a young woman from Banda district in Uttar Pradesh, India, traveled to Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, for employment as a domestic worker after being offered opportunities by an acquaintance named Uzair. While working in Abu Dhabi caring for an infant, the child died of alleged smothering. Shahzadi was arrested, prosecuted, convicted of murder, and sentenced to death by local courts. Her legal appeal was dismissed in Abu Dhabi on February 28, 2024. On the night of February 14, 2025, Shahzadi made a final 10-minute phone call to her father, Shabir Khan, stating her time was up. She was executed by hanging in Abu Dhabi on February 15, 2025. Her family and advocate filed a writ petition in the Delhi High Court seeking status updates, and on March 3, 2025, the Indian government officially confirmed her execution. Meanwhile, Uttar Pradesh police closed an Indian investigation against Uzair with a final report clearing him of criminal deception.
Country: None
State/Province: None
City/Region: Abu Dhabi
Incident Type: Murder
Relationship Status: None
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Incident Date: Feb. 15, 2025
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How the relationship or connection began.
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2025-02-15
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Unknown
This incident involved domestic employment overseas and an alleged crime committed in a domestic worker capacity, resulting in judicial capital punishment. It does not exhibit a romantic or matrimonial escalation dynamic.
The case does not appear to be primarily relationship-driven; it centered on domestic employment, alleged child murder, judicial trial in the UAE, and diplomatic communication delays. Shahzadi Khan was sentenced to death in Abu Dhabi after her appeal was dismissed on February 28, 2024. She was executed on February 15, 2025. Her family filed a writ petition in the Delhi High Court on February 24, 2025, and official confirmation of the execution was provided by the Ministry of External Affairs on March 3, 2025. Meanwhile, police in Uttar Pradesh investigated an FIR filed against Uzair for human trafficking or fraud, but submitted a final report clearing him.
There was significant confusion and delayed communication regarding the legal status and execution date of Shahzadi Khan. Her family received unofficial phone calls offering conflicting assurances that a review had been filed, while formal notification of her execution on February 15 was only communicated weeks later through court filings.
Shahzadi Khan migrated to Abu Dhabi in 2021 via an acquaintance named Uzair. She was assigned domestic care duties for an infant. Following the child's death from alleged smothering, local police arrested Shahzadi, who allegedly confessed during interrogation. She was sentenced to capital punishment. Despite legal representations and mercy petitions, her appeal was dismissed in early 2024, culminating in her execution on February 15, 2025.
The case involved extreme vulnerability arising from overseas domestic work, lack of local financial and legal resources, legal jurisdiction under foreign legal codes, and delayed communication between diplomatic channels and family members.
Highlight the extreme risks faced by vulnerable migrant workers operating under foreign legal systems without immediate legal aid or diplomatic interventions, as well as the necessity of official notification protocols for families of citizens facing capital punishment abroad.
The primary early signals included Shahzadi's distress regarding her living and working conditions in Abu Dhabi and her initial calls to her family prior to the infant's death.
Official court dismissal records in Abu Dhabi on February 28, 2024, and Shahzadi's final telephone call on February 14, 2025, indicated that capital punishment was imminent.
The court conviction in Abu Dhabi reportedly relied on an alleged confession by Shahzadi Khan and medical evidence indicating asphyxiation/smothering, though no post-mortem was performed prior to burial according to journalistic analysis.
Shabir Khan reported that his daughter called him crying at midnight on February 14, 2025, saying her time was up and she had been granted ten minutes to speak. Advocate Ali Mohammad Maz stated that emails and court petitions were filed to clarify her legal status due to lack of official communication.
Follow-up reports confirmed that Shahzadi Khan was executed on February 15, 2025, that the Government of India officially confirmed this in court on March 3, 2025, and that UP Police closed the fraud case against Uzair with a clean chit.
It remained unresolved whether a formal mercy petition was submitted on Shahzadi's behalf by diplomatic authorities, and whether her family would be permitted to receive her preserved remains or video documentation of her final rites.