Will Abdul Wahab, who scripted a daring escape out of Gujarat to undertake his Haj pilgrimage, return to the country? This is the question facing both the police and members of the underworld in the city.
A source who has been closely associated with the development, believes that the former aide of dreaded don Abdul Latif will definitely come back. Earlier, DNA had reported that Wahab took the road to Mumbai by constantly changing cars thus escaping
police surveillance.
He later left for Mecca from Mumbai. Sources said that there could be two reasons why Wahab may not rehabilitate himself abroad. "Countries like Saudi Arabia and Pakistan already have big players and Wahab will have to start all over again if he plans to establish himself there. Moreover, he will not easily give up all that he has set up here in the state," said the source.
Wahab, who is physically challenged and uses a wheel chair, was recently released from the Sabarmati jail after completing a jail term for murder. The case related to the murder of Bacchi Singh, a henchmen of underworld don Subhashsinh Thakur of Uttar Pradesh.
Bacchi Singh was shot dead in a Maruti Zen outside the district court compound in Mirzapur in 2000. After he was released from jail, the police had kept a close watch at Wahab's residence in the city. They were afraid that Wahab would resume his underworld activities.
In spite of the constant vigil, Wahab, against whom over two dozen serious cases, including those of murder and extortion are pending, managed to fly to Jeddah to perform Haj. If the buzz in the police department is to be believed, Wahab has already taken to his old ways and has begun his operations in the city. "There is a strong buzz in the department that Latif's former aide has already gone back to his business and is even making moolah out of it," said a senior police official of the state police."We have heard murmurs about his involvement in land dealings. But, so far nobody has come out with a complaint against him," said the official.
A source, who has tracked his career graph, believes that this time around Wahab is concentrating on land dealings, given the fact that land prices have sky rocketed.
"His 'dreaded gangster' reputation is helping him in such dealings. So much is his alleged influence that nobody dares touch a land if his name crops up in the dealing," said the source.
The source said that the fear of being gobbled up by large players in places like Saudi Arabia and Pakistan is not the only factor that may force Wahab to return.
If sources are to be believed he will return to his home town to dabble in politics. "Wahab plans to establish coaching classes and computer training institutes in Shahpur, where he resides. The plan is aimed for the welfare of the downtrodden students," said the source.
A source, who has tracked the rise of many such dons in politics, believes that such acts will gain him popularity in the area and will come handy if he plans to contest elections in the future.
"The possibility cannot be denied as Wahab's mentor and underworld don Abdul Latif had fought civic polls from five wards of the city even while he was in the Sabarmati Jail. Latif had emerged victorious in the polls," said the source.
Diary of a don
1Abdul Wahab, once a close aide of notorious gangster Abdul Latif, ventured to set up his own gang in the mid 90s.
2Wahab is an accused in many cases of extortion and murder. He was convicted for his role in the abduction of Ved Prakash Chiripal, a local industrialist, in 2004.
3After serving a life term at the Sabarmati central jail, he was released on March 26, 2009. Incidentally, while in jail, Wahab was kept under a section of CrPC that did not allow notorious prisoners to move out of the jail campus.
4Wahab is believed to have plotted the murder of a rival gangster outside the Mirzapur court in the year 2000.
5Recently, Wahab, in a daring escape, flew out of the country for Haj despite desperate efforts by the Gujarat police to prevent him from leaving.
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