The satya behind the Dawood-Chotta Rajan rivalry

The recent attack on Chotta Rajan by Dawood Ibrahim`s men was another bloody incident in the internecine war that characterises the Mumbai underworld. But the disturbing part is that these gangland killings are given a communal hue as each party tries to justify its actions in the name of religion. S A H Naqvi calls their bluff.

S A H Naqvi
Not only politicians, but underworld dons are also at an advantage whenever there is communal unrest in the country: The rivalry of Dawood Ibrahim and Chotta Rajan is a glaring example. Both have been successful in projecting themselves as the saviour of their respective communities.
True lies
However, the truth is that behind the on-going war between two underworld dons Dawood Ibrahim and Chotta Rajan is a full fledged professional rivalry rather than a communal one. “It is evident that these two mafia groups have shelled out a propaganda of communalism to hide their cruel and inhuman acts,” says a source at Delhi Police headquarters.
Dawood, a Konkani Muslim, justified his role in the Bombay blasts in 1993 by claiming that it was in retaliation for the Babri Masjid demolition. His gameplan was clearly to gain the sympathy of Muslims. He even got asylum in Pakistan by projecting himself as the saviour of Indian Muslims. Dawood is still in Karachi and lives in a palatial bungalow in the posh Defence Colony area, which is heavily guarded by ISI sleuths. On the other hand, Chotta Rajan, after falling out with Dawood, tried to project himself as a patriotic Hindu.
However, the truth is much different.
Police feel that by playing the communal card, Dawood succeeded in finding asylum in Pakistan and Rajan earned the Shiv Sena’s blessings.
"If Bombay blasts and Babri demolition were the cause of their rivalry, why did Dawood attend the wedding of Chotta Rajan in 1994? After all the battle of bullets is believed to have started in 1992…" the police source points out. Gangwar: The genesis

Police records trace the rivalry between the two underworld dons back to early 1992, when Chotta Rajan masterminded Bhandup gangster Kim Bahadur Thapa`s killing, without Dawood`s permission. Rajan believed that Thapa had tipped off the police about one of his friends.

Dawood retaliated to Thapa’s killing by getting his hitman Subhash Thakur kill three of Rajan’s aides.
The life-for-life rivalry reached its peak after Rajan got his men to kill Thakiyuddin Wahid, managing director of East West Airlines, in Mumbai in 1995. Police maintain that the row between them deepened only after the killing of Wahid, as Dawood had about 65 per cent of East West Airlines shares.
Rajan struck again and bumped off two of Dawood’s reliable men in Mumbai, including Piloo Khan and Sawant Singh. The major blow to Dawood came in June 1998, when sitting Nepal MP Mirza Dilshad Beg, a friend of Dawood was killed. Mohammad Safi, close aide of Chotta Rajan was arrested in connection with the case. Shootout in Bangkok

The death of Beg, put an end to the trade in illegal arms and drugs trafficking to India via Nepal. Incensed, Dawood ordered the elimination of Rajan.
He entrusted his lieutenant Chotta Shakeel with the job. Shakeel is in charge of the D Company’s operations in India, Dubai, Nepal and even in UK.
Shakeel got in touch with his aide Munna Jhingada and hatched the plan to murder Chotta Rajan in Karachi. According to the deal, Munna and his men would receive Rs 4 crores if they managed to eliminate Chotta Rajan. Munna and his two accomplices, both Pakistani nationals, left for Thailand via Nepal. In Bangkok, they got in touch with an arms dealer, who supplied them with the 9 mm pistols used in the kill bid.
They tracked Rajan’s movements in Bangkok, where he had gone to finalise some property deal. And at the first possible opportunity they struck.
According to sources, the gang rang the bell of the third-floor flat occupied by Chhota Rajan. Rajan`s lieutenant Rohit Verma opened the door and was gunned down. When his wife intervened, she also was shot at. While Verma died, his wife was admitted to hospital in a serious condition. The hitmen then entered the flat and opened fire at Chhota Rajan but he reportedly jumped out of the balcony.

The don is currently undergoing treatment in a secret location in Bangkok. A fact corroborated by Chotta Rajan’s righthand man, Bharat Nepali who told Zee News that ‘Nana’ (Rajan) was alive and has been shifted to a safehouse in Bangkok.
In a telephonic interview to Zee News, Bharat threatened the Dawood gang of dire consequences. Prior to this, Chotta Shakeel told Zee News that his gang was behind the attack on Rajan.
Police officials feel that the gang rivalry will not end unless one of the dons dies. As both Rajan and Dawood live outside India, the Indian police are helpless, as India has an extradition pact with only a few countries.