Why nobody in this UP village will name their daughter Shabnam

Preparations are under way by the Mathura district jail to hang Shabnam Ali, 38, who was sentenced to death in 2010 for killing seven members of her family -- both her parents, two brothers, sister-in-law, cousin and a 10-month-old -- in cold blood.But legal experts said it is not definitive yet as she has not yet exhausted all legal remedies. Shabnam could seek another judicial review of the petition in the Supreme Court, and could also file a curative petition.Untitled Carousel 81076954 TOI REPORT FROM JANUARY 2019 FOLLOWS:BAWANKHERI (AMROHA): In a corner of a prison cell in Moradabad jail, a woman sits writing copious letters to her 10-year-old son. The letters, sent every few days, are full of instructions for the boy, and hope for the future. “Study well. Obey your elders. I hope to reunite with you soon. Till then, take good care of yourself,” ends one letter by Shabnam, who has been in jail for over a decade.The murders took place in 2008, on the intervening night of April 14 and 15, in Bawankheri, a village some 20 kilometres from Amroha in Moradabad division of Uttar Pradesh. Along with her lover Saleem, Shabnam, who was seven weeks pregnant with his child, is believed to have drugged her family with milk laced with sedatives and then slaughtered them because they objected to her relationship. medium67540116Saleem came from a different socio-economic background and caste. Shabnam, then 25, was a double MA in English and Geography and worked as a school teacher. Her family, Saifi Muslims, were well-to-do landholders, while Saleem, a Pathan, was a class VI dropout, and worked as a daily wager.The brutal murders shocked the village so much that its impact still lingers, years later.Nobody in the village has named their daughter ‘Shabnam’ after the incident. “No Shabnam was born in Bawankheri after that fateful night. People are too scared to give their daughters that name,” says Intezaar Ali, who lives in front of the Alis’ house which still has blood stains in the room where the massacre took place. medium67555592Shabnam’s uncle, Sattar Ali, occupies the house now. Ask him about the gruesome incident, and he says, “Shabnam is as good as dead for me. I don’t want to relive those memories any more.”The family owned around 30 bigha of land. Her father was an Arts teacher in the local college. Shabnam, too, taught in the village school and was a favourite among her students. Nobody had really thought that the demure girl, every bit the obedient daughter, could commit such a crime. “All of us were shocked. There was some tension in the family due to her relationship with that man, but it was impossible to imagine that it would end that way,” says her uncle. medium67522637Shabnam initially denied any role in the murders and instead claimed that thieves had entered the house while she was in the bathroom. However, subsequent investigations nailed Shabnam and Saleem’s lie. “Their phone records revealed they had spoken to each other 50-60 times on April 14 when the murders occurred,” says Intezaar Ali. “The last call was made at 1.45 am by Shabnam to Saleem. A few minutes later, she came out on her balcony and started crying out for help, I was the first person who heard her cries and informed the police.”The postmortem revealed that the family had been drugged before being killed, an act which could have been carried out only by an insider. There were no struggle marks on the bodies either. Police immediately became suspicious of Shabnam’s original account. The duo subsequently confessed to the crime and police recovered the weapon that had been used in the murders.Once the two lovers were brought in court, they turned against each other. Both were eventually awarded the death sentence by local courts and the decision was upheld by the SC. The duo then wrote to the President for mercy but the plea was rejected. Shabnam’s lawyer then filed a last review petition in the apex court which was also rejected.Shabnam son, meanwhile, a few years earlier, was “adopted” by a Bulandshahr-based couple, journalist Usman Saifi and his wife Vandana. 67522883A TOI team travelled to Amroha to meet the kid. Sitting in the office of the child welfare committee (CWC) at Amroha where he has to come every few months for verification, he was googling Shabnam’s pictures and asking Saifi about a man in it. Saifi -- who hates the question -- replied, “He is your uncle, Saleem.’’ Later, he told TOI, “I don’t know how long I can keep the truth from him.” medium67522792There is a back story on how Usman came to take care of Shabnam’s son. “Shabnam and I studied in the same college. She was two years senior to me. We used to take the same bus to college. Once, I confided in her that I had no money to submit my fees. She helped me,” Usman said.Taking care of her child, he adds, is his way of repaying Shabnam. “I was shocked when I read about the murders and that Shabnam had been arrested for them. Had it not been for her, I would have had to drop out of college. The least I can do is look after her child.”Incidentally, Usman and Vandana are only foster parents of the boy and cannot adopt him legally. Harpal Singh Chauhan, president, CWC, says that’s because Islam doesn’t allow adoption. “If Shabnam comes out of jail by any chance, she can always take back her child.” medium67556136The story was first published in January 2019. It has since been updated with the latest developments