Underworld tries to regroup away from the city

The arrest of three men purported to belong to the Chhota Rajan gang by the Lucknow police on Saturday shows that though depleted, the underworld refuses to lie low. Officers of the crime branch of the Mumbai police believe that efforts are on to reactivate the gangs of Dawood Ibrahim and Rajan.

The officers say Dawood’s men are undertaking a recruitment drive in Uttar Pradesh, something that the Special Task Force of the Uttar Pradesh police has confirmed with the arrest of two criminals in the state nine days ago. They confessed to acting on behalf of Dawood’s gang.

“We are keeping a close watch,” Joint Commissioner of Police (Crime) Rakesh Maria says. “It is well known that when there is a lull, it is used for regrouping. We have to continuously change and update our strategy as far as the activities of the underworld are concerned.”

The latest developments also point to the fact that Dawood’s gang does not have much support left in Mumbai. The slide in its fortunes, which began after the serial bomb blasts of 1993, seems to have isolated the gang completely. With Arun Gawli donning a political mantle, Chhota Rajan’s gang has free rein in the city. The only difference is that the gang is going about its activities covertly now.

Key members of the gang like DK Rao, Vicky Malhotra, Farid Tanasha, Anil alias Andya, Potdar alias Potya, Barkya, Satish Kaliya, Nilesh Paradkar, Abu Sawant, Danny Nepali, Suresh Shetty, and Manu Shetty are still alive and kicking. Many are behind bars, but some like Danny and the Shetty brothers are free and operating with impunity. Danny is said to be operating from Tanakpur on the India-Nepal border, where he is hiring recruits and procuring weapons. The Shetty brothers operate from their base in Mangalore.

“On paper, the Rajan gang is the most powerful now,” a senior crime branch officer said. “It has money and manpower. The only weakness is the ill health of Rajan, who is said to be in Cambodia.”

Dawood operates mainly through Chhota Shakeel now, who in turn speaks through Ali Budesh or Fahim Machmach. “The bigwigs in Dawood’s gang have made enough money and invested in real estate and stock exchanges across Asia. They need not make extortion calls. The small-timers in the gang indulge in such activities now, just to prove that they exist,” the officer said.

Then there are some splinter groups like those of Ejaz Lakdawala, Ravi Pujari, Hemant Pujari and Bunty Pande, but they have little or no money or manpower. Other old-time criminals have joined different political parties while still others have joined hands with builders and use their muscle to evict slum dwellers.

“We cannot say that the underworld has been decimated,” says Additional Director-General of Police Satyapal Singh. “As long as the hardened gangsters are around, they are bound to operate for their bosses.”