Mumbai, November 21
The government of the United Arab Emirates have begun a major crackdown on the Dawood Ibrahim gang by rounding up several of its members in a major clean-up operation.
According to police sources here, more than a hundred members of the D Company, as the gang is known, have been rounded up over the past several weeks. However, like in the past most of them were let off, sources here said. Several of the arrested persons were running legitimate businesses owned by Dawood Ibrahim and his front men, according to sources here.
Around 30 members of the gang are still in the custody of the authorities of which 10 were deported to India. Many of those deported to India are on the wanted list of the authorities here with red-corner notices from Interpol put out for them.
The UAE Government decided to crack down on the D Company members after Raju Bookie, a major bookie who fixes cricket matches in the sub-continent, was murdered in Dubai. According to the information available here, Raju was murdered earlier this month prompting a crackdown on the gang.
Raju is said to have fallen out of Dawood's favour.
Of the 10, who were deported to Mumbai, several are wanted in connection with the 1993 serial bomb blasts in Mumbai. Among those deported are Arif, alias Bhai Jaan, Chotta Shakeel's brother-in-law. The names of some of the deported persons have been given as Zamaar Haji, Anjum Kherwani, Salim Qureshi and Qayum, all wanted in connection with the 1993 blasts.
All the 10 deported gangsters are being questioned by the anti-terror squad of the Mumbai police.
A section of the police officials also speculated that relations between Dawood and Chotta Shakeel might be thawing. The UAE regime is known to be very soft on Dawood and those he disapproves of have been quietly deported to
India.
