Who is Shaheen Shahid, doctor & Jaish recrutier at centre of Delhi blast probe: 'Was tasked by Masood Azhar's sister to ...'

Raised in Hata Mustafa Khan in Khandari Bazar, Lucknow, Shaheen is the daughter of Shahid Ansari, a retired official from the state health department. Those who knew her describe someone who had long aspired to join the medical profession, reported HT. After finishing her MBBS in Prayagraj, she entered GSVM Medical College in Kanpur as a lecturer in 2006. Colleagues earlier quoted in an HT report recalled that she worked diligently for about three years before being shifted to Kannauj following conflicts with a senior officer.

Though transferred in 2009, she returned to Kanpur within half a year, but her attendance was erratic, the report said. Officials familiar with her employment record told HT she eventually stopped showing up altogether, and after years of unresponsiveness, she was dismissed in 2021 for prolonged absence.

Her personal life also took a difficult turn. Shaheen married Zafar Hayat, a Maharashtra native who also worked at GSVM Kanpur, but their marriage ended in 2015. Following the separation, she lived an unusually secluded life and stayed away from her Lucknow residence for six years. During this period, she settled in Faridabad with Dr Muzammil Ahmad Ganaia, who is also a key accused in the same case. Muzammil is known to have been close to Umar un-Nabi, the man behind the wheel of the Hyundai i20 that exploded near Red Fort.

Investigators allege that she had been tasked with setting up the Indian branch of Jamaat-ul-Mominaat, the women’s wing of JeM, which is headed in Pakistan by Sadia Azhar, the sister of JeM chief Masood Azhar.

‘Cannot believe she was involved': Dr Shaheen's family

Back in Lucknow, her family says the charges are impossible to believe. Her elder brother, Mohammad Shoaib, said police and Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) officials searched their home “politely and professionally.”

“They just asked normal questions about when we last spoke to her. It’s been four years since we had any contact. Our parents used to check on her occasionally. There was never any sign of wrongdoing,” Shoaib was quoted by PTI as saying.

Her father, Syed Ahmad Ansari, said, “I cannot believe my daughter was involved in such activities. She studied medicine in Allahabad and later worked in Faridabad. She was married once, got divorced, and focused on her work and children.”

Ex-husband questioned by police in Kanpur

Dr Shaheen'’s ex-husband, Dr Zafar Hayat, who lives in Kanpur, was questioned by the Crime Branch following intelligence inputs. He said he learned of her arrest only from the news.

“We were married in 2003 and divorced in 2012. I am not sure what was on her mind that led to it. There was never any dispute or quarrel between us. She was a loving and caring person. I never had any inkling that she could be involved in such activities. She was deeply attached to her family and children, loved them immensely and took care of their studies,” he was quoted by NDTV as saying.

"I had never seen her in a burqa. I have no idea about her alleged involvement in any terror activities now being reported. Our divorce happened long ago, in 2012, and if she got involved in something later, I know nothing about it. Once she suggested that we settle in Australia or Europe for a better salary and quality of life. But I told her we already live a good life here, have good jobs and kids. We have our relatives and everyone here, we would feel alone there," he added.

The Kanpur Commissioner of Police, Raghubir Lal, confirmed that officers also visited Ganesh Shankar Vidyarthi Memorial (GSVM) Medical College, where she once taught, to review her old records.

Investigators link case to JeM’s new women’s wing

According to the officials, Dr Shaheen disappeared from her post at GSVM Medical College in 2013 without notice and was formally dismissed in 2021. After joining Al-Falah University, she allegedly came into contact with Dr Ganaie and two other doctors now arrested in the Faridabad explosives case.

Investigators say Ganaie, originally from Pulwama in Jammu and Kashmir, was already under watch for supporting JeM through posters and digital propaganda. His interrogation led authorities to the massive seizure of explosives, detonators, and timers.

Intelligence sources believe the arrests are tied to JeM’s efforts to rebuild its sleeper network after Operation Sindoor in which several top JeM operatives, including Yusuf Azhar, husband of Masood Azhar’s sister Sadia, were killed in May.

Shortly after that, JeM allegedly launched Jamaat-ul-Mominaat, a women’s wing based in Bahawalpur, Pakistan, with recruitment drives reported in Karachi, Kotli, and Muzaffarabad.

As per the investigators, Dr Shaheen, given her education and professional standing, was seen as a “credible face” who could help replicate the Pakistan-based women’s recruitment model inside India.