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Dawood thought he was the US president

The mention of Dawood Ibrahim in Forbes magazine’s most powerful individuals list may have surprised many, but not those who have followed his rise in the world of crime.

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The mention of Dawood Ibrahim in Forbes magazine’s most powerful individuals list may have surprised many, but not those who have followed his rise in the world of crime.
I have known this India’s most-wanted criminal from his early days and as a journalist, studied his rise from a street ruffian to his latest status as world’s 50th most powerful person.

He was one of Mumbai’s gangsters, with Karim Lala and Vardarajan Mudaliar as his seniors, but superseded all in a span of just five years — between 1983 and 1988. He became so powerful that even the aged don Karim Lala had to go all the way to Mecca to sign a truce with him.

He shifted his base to Dubai in 1986 and established chains of businesses in partnership with local Sheikhs. He rubbed shoulders with kings and princes of the Gulf emirates and acquired more power, which at later stages saved him from being extradited to India.
He always had a passion for big things. He wore designer clothes, Armani suits, carried Cartier pens and smoked Cartier cigarettes. He rode a custom-built white Rolls Royce and had a fleet of Mercedes cars. Each vehicle was fitted with costly satellite phones, as there were no mobile phones in those days.

He always thought that he was born to rule. He also believed he was like the president of the US. That illusion made him name his palatial mansion on the outskirts of Dubai as White House.

Some years later, when he purchased a villa in London, it wad also named White House. When he was forced to leave Dubai and made Karachi his home, there he bought a mansion and again named it White House.

He loves gambling and visited elite casinos not only in the UK or Europe but also made frequent trips to Monte Carlo.

He held regular durbars at his Dubai office, which were attended by top businessmen, builders and doctors. Several top Bollywood actors danced to his tunes. He settled disputes and ordered punishments to those who defied him. His word was finals and no one dared to challenge him. Those who wanted a revenge never succeeded in reaching anywhere near him.

He handled black money investments of a few well-known politicians and was like a family member to them. A number of policemen were on his pay list.

The 1993 serial bomb blasts in the city he once again proved that he could strike anytime anywhere and no one could ever touch him.

Despite hectic efforts during the past many years, the government has failed to bring him back. Even Pakistani establishment was forced to shield him when red corner notices were issued against him and the declared him an international terrorist.
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