A little change of plans sealed the fate of a Delhi-based family, who were in the Howrah-Delhi Kalka Mail that derailed near the Malwa station, nearly 120km from Lucknow, on Sunday.


The story: The family's landlord watches the news on TV. (Insert)
Shahna. Pic/Mid Day

Shahna (16) and her family, residents of Bhogal in Nizamuddin area of New Delhi, were on way from Kolkata, when the tragedy struck. While her mother Sakeena died on the spot, Shahna's brother Shahzad (14) went missing for almost 12 hours and was later found dead too. Her father Suleman has been admitted to a hospital in Kanpur.

According to neighbours, the family visited Shahna's maternal grandparents in Kolkata every year. This year, their plans were a bit delayed, which saw them aboard the ill-fated train.u00a0

Immediately after the accident, Shahzad went missing. Shahna kept looking for him through the night and finally found him among the dead at five in the morning.

Zeeshan Saran, Shahna's previous landlord in Bhogal, said, "They were a jovial family. They lived here for 25 years and were like family to us. We used to play together and Shahna was a sister to me."

Saran's mother said she talked to Shahna in the morning . She said, "Shahna told us that the police officials helped her identify her brother's body. They showed her a picture and asked if he was Shahzad. She found the body wrapped up in the same sheet that he was sleeping in the night before." At the time of filing of this report, Shahna and her relatives were taking the bodies to Kolkata.