How ‘unusual’ pink carpet could hold key clue to solve mysterious murder of girl, 11, who vanished on way to school

GRABBING her Take That backpack, PE kit and immoderate escaped alteration for sweets, 11-year-old Nayantara Ali waved goodbye to her grandma and acceptable disconnected for schoolhouse conscionable aft 8am.

She lived a abbreviated 15-minute locomotion distant and usually took 1 of 2 routes some involving a imaginable halt astatine a section saccharine shop.

It was a regular she followed religiously but connected this peculiar November day, Nayantara, known besides arsenic Nayan, vanished and was ne'er seen live again.

It was aft 25 days of searching that Nayan's bare assemblage was recovered wrapped successful a pea-green furniture sheet, conscionable yards from her home.

And now, arsenic the 30-year day of her convulsive murder approaches, her slayer inactive hasn't been caught.

A doting granddaughter

Nayan's household knew instantly that thing was amiss erstwhile she failed to travel location connected clip from schoolhouse astatine 4pm similar she usually did.

When the schoolhouse confirmed she hadn't arrived determination either that day, her household instantly feared the worst.

It was wholly retired of quality for the schoolgirl, who lived with her grandmother, aunt and uncle, Aleem Malik, successful Forest Gate, East London, arsenic her parents inactive lived successful Pakistan.

She was peculiarly adjacent to her grandma, the brace shared a room, and she would walk clip each greeting plaiting Nayan's agelong hairsbreadth for schoolhouse earlier waving her disconnected for the day.

She would cheekily tease her nan implicit her 'bad' cooking but she wasn't known to misbehave oregon ever rotation off.

'Things similar this hap everyday'

Frantic with worry, Mr Malik called the police, but astatine the clip of Nayan's disappearance, her family were captious of their response, claiming it was 3 and a fractional hours earlier they arrived astatine the household home.

Once there, reports from the clip uncover the household claimed the constabulary asked questions specified as: "Did you unit her to deterioration Asian clothes? Did you person immoderate plans to nonstop her backmost to Pakistan against her will? Has an arranged matrimony been acceptable up for her?"

It was successful stark opposition to however Nayan's household felt the constabulary reacted to the disappearance of Lindsay Rimer, a achromatic miss from Yorkshire, who'd gone missing astir the aforesaid time, a lawsuit which attracted immense attention.

Nayan's uncle Mr Malik told The Independent astatine the time: "The constabulary refused to judge that Nayan had been abducted.

"'Things similar this hap each day,' they said. They conscionable wanted to marque excuses."

However, Detective Superintendant Douglas Harvey, from North East London's Major Investigation Pool, insisted helium was satisfied his squad did their champion to find Nayan.

"Mr Malik's complaints were without foundation. He wanted america to find his niece. We didn't. He is upset. That is understandable," helium responded.

An entreaty for assistance

A property league was arranged 5 days aft Nayan went missing connected November 9, with her mum arriving for the entreaty from Pakistan.

But the household were unhappy, and questioned wherefore their lawsuit gained specified small publicity, with Mr Malik wounded by the deficiency of interest.

Mr Malik aboriginal concluded that the property league had been the "peak". From past connected it was "all downhill". 

A assemblage wrapped successful a bedsheet

Despite the criticism, appeals for accusation were made, and the hunt focused astir Nayan's location and 2 imaginable 15-minute walking routes she utilized to get to school.

A person said she thought she saw her buying sweets from a adjacent store that greeting connected Odessa Road.

However determination was besides a saccharine store connected Dames Road which Nayan would besides spell to, which was other a large, unfastened green, Wanstead Flats.

In the archetypal week 50 impermanent unit and 12 CID officers were assigned to pursuit up leads.

However Nayan's disappearance took a heartbreaking crook connected November 29 - astir a period aft she archetypal went missing - erstwhile her assemblage was discovered.

It was established the schoolgirl had been sexually assaulted and battered earlier she was killed.

Her bare assemblage was wrapped successful a greenish bedsheet and a portion of pinkish carpet, buried nether rubble and dumped successful a disused stonemason's gait beside the railway tracks, conscionable yards from her home.

The gait was a known fly-tipping hotspot, and whoever enactment her determination astir surely had section knowledge.

Upon proceeding the news, Nayan's bereft parent ran into the thoroughfare screaming for her daughter, shouting: "Nayan wherever are you? Nayan wherever are you?''

Nayan’s household were near devastated astatine the grisly find but were besides aggravated astatine the constabulary for their lacklustre investigation.

Speaking astatine the clip Nayan’s uncle, Aleem said:  "The constabulary decided that this was a household happening - different Asian miss rebelling against her family.

"I kept telling them `Nayan has been abducted', but they didn't instrumentality maine seriously.”

A pea-green sheet

The lawsuit was featured connected BBC amusement Crimewatch and the nationalist were asked to telephone successful with immoderate information.

The amusement focused connected 2 important bits of grounds - a pea-green single, fitted expanse which unusually had a valance attached and a 7 ft portion of thick-pile pinkish carpet, chopped into a circle, possibly erstwhile utilized arsenic a rug successful a bedroom.

Speaking connected the amusement and referencing the rug, Detective Super Intendant Doug Harvey said: "The antithetic happening astir it is it appears to person been unprofessionally chopped from a larger portion of carpet.

"Perhaps a spectator knows idiosyncratic who's done that oregon possibly the remnants are inactive lying somewhere.

"The different happening astir it is it is imaginable the assemblage was carried done the streets for a abbreviated region successful the carpet."

Referring to the sheet, the detective added: "What I'm hoping for is successful a precise section area, if idiosyncratic has looked implicit their neighbour's obstruction and seen specified a expanse hanging connected their washing enactment oregon possibly successful a work lavation successful a launderette - we indispensable perceive from them."

Nayan's clothes, her schoolhouse azygous including a achromatic jumper with the school's logo connected and her reddish striped tie, an umbrella, PE kit and schoolhouse container she was carrying - a distinctive Take That drawstring container - were not discovered.

'We conscionable wanted a body'

However, constabulary were nary further guardant to catching her killer, overmuch to the devastation of Nayan's family.

"As the weeks went by, we gave up asking the constabulary for information," said Mr Malik. "It got to the constituent wherever we conscionable wanted the body.

"If Nayan was alive, she would person travel home. She hadn't, truthful she had to beryllium dead."

The constabulary astatine the clip defended their investigation, with Detective Super intendant Douglas Harvey saying: "I treated Nayan's disappearance arsenic a imaginable execution from the time I was enactment connected to the case.

"I conscionable didn't archer the family. I didn't privation to upset them.

"Mr Malik doesn't recognize constabulary procedure. He doesn't recognize that erstwhile we've finished searching, determination is small we tin bash but travel up sightings and proceed door-to-door inquiries."

His workfellow Detective Inspector Frank Weatherley, from Leyton constabulary station, agreed.

He said: "Mr Malik has been sitting successful his beforehand country for the past fewer weeks. Just due to the fact that the hunt isn't taking spot extracurricular his window, helium thinks it isn't happening."

But Mr Malik refused to judge their explanation. He said: "She mightiness person been saved if the constabulary hadn't stereotyped her.

"To them, Nayan was conscionable different Asian miss who was unhappy astatine location - different Asian miss trying to flight a strict, accepted upbringing.

"She died due to the fact that they did not instrumentality her disappearance seriously.

"There is thing much to say."

An unanswered enigma

A subordinate of the nationalist submitted a Freedom of Information petition to the Metropolitan Police successful 2020 asking whether immoderate DNA grounds was discovered and for an update connected the investigation.

The petition was refused and what happened to Nayan that fateful time inactive remains a mystery.

A Scotland Yard spokesperson said: “As with each unsolved murders, the probe into the execution of 11-year-old Nayantara Ali is open, and detectives stay committed to securing justness for her family.”