Dawood Ibrahim wanted to return during UPA regime; Manmohan Singh denies

New Delhi: Dawood Ibrahim, 1993 Mumbai serial blasts accused and India’s most wanted person, wanted to return to India in 2013 and had established contact with the Manmohan Singh government, a newspaper report said on Tuesday.

According to a report published in The Indian Express, a Delhi based senior lawyer, who is also a Congress leader, had communicated to his party leadership and then prime minister Manmohan Singh that the underworld don wanted to negotiate and 'return' to India.

The daily says the controversial issue was discussed within the leadership and the government.

The report further states that Dr Singh and ex-national security advisor Shivshankar Menon held hectic consultations on possibility of Dawood's return.

While responding to the queries on the sensational issue, the ex-PM in an email response said, “I have no recollection of any discussion with any person regarding the return of underworld leader Dawood Ibrahim.”

However, some former officials have confirmed that Dawood's offer was discussed by the party leadership and it was taken up by Dr Singh's office as well.

It is being said that the lawyer, who took the offer to the Congress leadership, had handled several cases of D-company and was in touch with Dawood's family members.

The report further states that Dawood is suffering from a serious kidney ailment and wanted to return to India and be with his family members.

However, the then Congress government rejected Dawood's offer, as it was apprehensive of conducting a trial against India's most wanted on his terms.

Earlier, months after the 1993 Mumbai serial blasts, the underworld don on November 01, 1993 had filed a plea asking the Supreme Court to shift the blasts cases from Mumbai to Delhi. However, the petition was never filed.

Dawood's petition had criticised the Mumbai Police and accused some vested interests of trying to implicate him in the blasts case.

The draft petition, accessed by The Indian Express, further said: “The trial be moved to a jurisdiction in which ends of justice would be better served and a fair and impartial trial can take place.”