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Locals had to pool funds for wedding of Ghaziabad bride murdered by highway robbers
Shahzeb, a resident of Muzaffarnagar, and his newlywed wife were returning home after their marriage in Nahal when Farhana was shot dead by robbers on Meerut highway on Friday night.
The family members of 22-year-old Farhana, the newlywed bride who was shot dead by armed robbers in Meerut on late Friday night, had arranged for the marriage with contribution from locals.
She was the first among nine siblings from an economically struggling family in Nahal village of Ghaziabad to get married.
“It was around 7pm when she set off for the journey to her new house. She was happy and greeted us all before they left. Chairperson from Dasna nagar palika, people from nearby Sikrod village and locals had pitched in by gathering funds for her marriage as Farhana’s father has been unwell for the past six months,” said Zubeida, Farhana’s maternal aunt. “Her family still owes ₹29,000 to the jeweller.”
After the incident, Farhana’s mother Batto, father Farman and brothers have been inconsolable, locals said.
“She could study only till Class 5, but she helped her family by earning ₹50-60 per day doing embroidery work. The family is poor and her elder brother works as a daily wager, while her younger brother is an autorickshaw driver,” said Mohammad Wahid, Farhana’s cousin.
Farhana’s father-in-law Mohammad Shamshad said that the marriage proposal with his son Shahzeb was floated 5-6 months back.
“We were taken aback by the arrangements and the welcome we received at Farhana’s house. But our happiness only lasted a couple of hours,” he said.
“I was travelling in a car ahead of the couple, while another car that had our relatives was behind them. The robbers shot her in the chest and pushed her out of the car. They also manhandled my son and fled with the car. They were lying on the road, but no one stepped forward to help. It was only after the car, which was behind them, arrived that we could take them to the hospital,” Shamshad added.
He added that the car, in which the bride and the groom were travelling, was a hired cab.
“It is surprising that the cab driver did not make efforts to drive away when the robbers cornered them. Their car and the robbers’ car were parked with some distance between them. The driver had a chance to speed off, but he appeared to make no such effort,” Shamshad said.
The Meerut police said that they had no substantial leads in the case so far.
