Ustad Bismillah Khan’s shehnai stolen from his ancestral house

Varanasi: Five Shehnai’s of Ustad Bismillah Khan have gone missing from his son Kazim Hussain’s home in Varanasi. Khan’s grandson Razi Hassan has lodged First Information Report (FIR) of his silver shehnais and some awards being stolen.

Hussain said, “We lodged an FIR on Sunday evening after we discovered the theft in our new home in Dalmandi area. The stuff that was stolen included four silver shehnais, one made of wood and silver, Inayat Khan Award and two gold bangles.

The family said that they had recently shifted to Dalmandi area and the theft happened when they were visiting their ancestral place in Sarai Harha.

What police said:

Senior superintendent of police (SSP) Nitin Tiwari confirmed the theft and stated that the matter was being investigated. “The FIR has been filed with the Varanasi police by Khan’s grandson and our department was investigating the matter,” he said.

What else the family members said:

• Shehnais were very special to the late musician and were gifted to him by former Prime Minister PV Narasimha Rao, Kapil Sibbal and Lalu Prasad Yadav.
• One of the shehnais was played by him during the Muharram procession every year.
• None of his shehnais are left with us except for the wooden one that he played to practice.
• The family is now left with Bismillah Khan ’s Bharat Ratna medal, Padma Shree and some other medals only.
• It may be recalled that the report of Khan ’s shehnai being stolen had also been filed earlier but they were recovered from their house later.