‘He prayed to keep family united, they died together'

Mumbai: Imtiaz Ali Syed finds it surreal that his brother's last plea at umrah —to keep his family "together, always"—was granted with such sorrowful finality. In the aftermath of the AI 171 crash in Ahmedabad, the Syed family's tight-knit quartet—Javed, wife Mariam and their two children, Zayn and Amani, all British nationals—were reunited at Jamaat-Ul-Muslimeen kabrastan on Wednesday.
"Mariam was like a little sister to me. She even named my firstborn," Imtiaz recalled. "Our father died young. Our mother and grandmother raised us together. We've always been close: two sons, two daughters, all inseparable."
The Syed family hadn't gathered in 15 years—until Javed's layover in Mumbai.
Imtiaz disagreed with AI's initial handling of the crisis. "It should've deployed emergency staff in Ahmedabad immediately.
I was mourning and managing it all, while waiting two days for any outreach." He said once engaged, the airline "was extremely efficient".
Even amid searing loss, Imtiaz channels his brother's legacy of generosity. "Javed sponsored underprivileged students. We'll continue that work for his peace. If people remember anything from his life, let it be his belief in sadaqah—being kind and generous, always." —Mrinalini Singh

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