Sabina Sehgal Saikia missing in Taj:

The fate of senior journalist and renowned food critic, Sabina Sehgal Saikia remains unknown, as desperate family members tried to establish contact with her but in vain. She was staying at Heritage Taj Hotel in Mumbai, when terrorist attacked the hotel last night. Sabina, who is senior journalist Santanu Saikia’s wife, had gone to Mumbai on official work two days ago and was staying in the room in Heritage Wing of Taj. Santanu Saikia, left for Mumbai this morning, after he failed to establish contact with her since last night. Her cell phone went dead since last night, soon after the terrorist struck the Hotel.

Talking to this newspaper, he said that the wing she was staying in was the first to be attacked by the terrorists. The room was among the first ones that caught fire. A family of a senior executive of the Taj Group of Hotels who were staying in the adjoining room, are feared to have perished in the first wave of attack.

A distraught Saikia, son of founding editor of Gariyoshi, late Chandra Prasad Saikia, said that since last night he had been calling her cell phone but in vain. Till the time of filing of this report, there was no word from Sabina, though military operation had gathered momentum.

The possibility that she may be trapped in one of the rooms or held hostage by the terrorists has not been ruled out, as a desperate Saikia waits for any clue about her fate.

Sabina is the Consulting Editor of the The Times of India and a reputed food critic, and is also known for her culinary expertise. She has authored several books on eating joints in the Capital. Her immensely popular column ‘Main Course’ has accurately charted the business of eating out in the Capital.