KATHMANDU: Underworld crime ‘Mashiah’ Dawood Ibrahim, who has been exploiting various capitals of the world to execute his criminal activities, has not spared the small Himalayan country Nepal, too.
India’s most-sought-after criminal and fugitive Dawood has been operating multiple businesses ranging from the circulation of fake Indian currency, medical colleges, murder, kidnapping, smuggling, trafficking, plan hijacking to casinos to name a few, according to various news outlets in Nepal and India.
Underworld ‘don’ Dawood has been executing various illegal activities hailing this beautiful Himalayan country as a safe haven for such activities.
Indian media claim that Dawood has picked his key people to lead such operations in Nepal. Referring to the response by Ijaz Yousuf Lakdawala, one of the key gang members of Dawood in Kathmandu, given during a police probe after his arrest, the Jagararn.com an Indian online news outlet claim that Dawood has been operating his business through a senior official at Pakistan Embassy in Nepal.
Dawood’s company has invested hundreds of millions in Kathmandu and has a big transaction here, the news outlet says citing Lakdawala’s statement to the Indian police.
DIG Thapa confessed that there are few instances of international influence especially due to the open border with India. He claimed they are very few in number.
However, the Nepal Police denies the claim. Asked about the speculations about Dawood nexus’s expansion up to Nepali politicians and some of their joint ventures including some construction and other types of companies, DIG Sailesh Thapa Chhetri, the spokesperson of Nepal Police says, “We do not go after unverifiable news, what we can affirm is Kathmandu is safe and there are no activities of the terrorists going on overtly or covertly in Kathmandu.”
He claims Nepal Police is capable to curb such activities.
However, he does not deny the possibility of an underground group’s making this beautiful capital a sandbox. “Such activities are not confined to any national border,” confesses DIG Thapa and adds, “However, even such international gangs are brought to the book.”
DIG Thapa confessed that there are few instances of international influence especially due to the open border with India. He claimed they are very few in number.
On the other hand, former DIG Hemanta Malla does not negate the underworld’s prospective attempt to develop it as a key shelter for them. Hinting at the way the foreign currency is brought and circulated in the Nepali market, former DIG Malla, a man of wide experience at the Special Bureau in Nepal Police asserts that the criminals might try to use this capital as a haven. The black market is likely to intensify the underworld activities.
Former DIG Keshav Adhikari’s comment is also in line with former DIG Malla. “Rather than disturbing Nepal and its inhabitants directly, they are likely to use it as a place for strategy making.” He adds, “They seem to think that provided it’s used otherways, they will be at trouble.”
Here goes Dawood connection in Nepal
Dawood Ibrahim is believed to be the key person of ‘D Company, the one responsible for the Mumbai serial blasts of 1993. After the Mumbai blast, the group dispersed and started using Nepal as a safe shelter.
After the Mumbai incident, they crept into Nepal taking advantage of the open border between Nepal and India. First, they took shelter in Nepal merely to keep them out of Indian security’s sight, but later, taking the help of some locals started operating various businesses from here.
Bablu has written: “To skip police I went at Chandraswami’s in Delhi, but the relationship did not go well much longer. Then I went to Nepal and stayed there. In 1992, I reached Dubai where Mirza Dilshad Beg arranged for my meeting with Dawood Ibrahim.”
Some of them, with the help of some Nepalis, managed to make a ‘fake’ passport which they used to fly to places like Kuala Lumpur, Singapore and Dubai.
After the Mumbai attack, the underworld circuit went spreading when most of the fled members came here. The nexus got so intense that after some time their involvement could be felt in most of the major criminal activities of Nepal.
The organized crimes like murder, plane hi-jacking, gold and drug trafficking, fake Indian currency, casino, hundi, betting, etc. are said to be executed by Dawood’s associates in connection with their Nepali partners.
In his book, Bablu Srivastav, another underworld ‘don’ now counting his days in Indian jail has talked about such nexus in various contexts.
Bablu has written: “To skip police I went at Chandraswami’s in Delhi, but the relationship did not go well much longer. Then I went to Nepal and stayed there. In 1992, I reached Dubai where Mirza Dilshad Beg arranged for my meeting with Dawood Ibrahim.”
Former DIG Malla also asserts the fact that media outlets often talk about the underworld here in Nepal as well. “Sometimes the media of Nepal talk about the connection of the underworld including Dawood’s in some criminal activities which took place before,” Malla says, “ it can not be negated completely.”
According to the investigating officials at Nepal Police, the member of the Indian underworld are making Nepal target next to Singapore, Malaysia and Dubail.
Some instances of underworld nexus
On Jun.29, 1998, Mirza Dilshad Beg was shot dead on June 29, 1998, while he was on his way to visit his second wife in Siphal, Kathmandu. He was an MP and former Minister. While investigating about his murder, Nepal Police felt he was connected to the underworld don Dawood Ibrahim. In nearly 2 decades after the Dawood-Mirza link was established, nearly half a dozen similar murders have taken place in Nepal.
Chronology of Murder
- Jun 29, 1998, Mirza Dilsad Beg, was murdered in Siphal Kathamandu
- 30, 2006, Kamal Singh Nepali was murdered in New Baneswor, Kathmandu
- 25, 2009 Abdul Majit Manihar was shot dead in Nepalgunj
- 25, 2009, Shaukat Ali Beg was murdered in Rupandehi
- 7, 2010, Media entrepreneur Jamim Shah was shot dead in Lazimpat, Kathmandu
- 10, 2011, Yunush Ansari was shot at Central Jail in Kathmandu
- 26,2011, Faijan Ahamad, the General Secretary of Nepal Islamic Sangh was shot dead
- 2013, Mohammad Alam, then NCP(UML) leader was shot dead in Bara.
Police investigation establishes some link between these killings and the underworld. According to money-laundering experts, Dawood’s company chose Nepal to make their black money white.
Dawood’s link is often alleged in the gold trafficking business prospering these days. Besides, though some Indian media talk about some of Nepal’s businessmen’s connection with Dawood, no evidence is found so far.
Although there were rumors about Nathmal Agrawal’s (Nagraj’s) connection with Dawood, no proof have been established so far. Nagraj was arrested in Kathmandu on Jun.23, 2018 in allegation of betting 204 million rupees in IPL. Security experts opine that any allegations made in such issues should be led to the logical and fact-based conclusions.
DIG Shailesh Thapa Chhetri, the spokesperson of Nepal Police deems it necessary to be more vigilant about the underworld activities and supervise the cross-border activities more minutely to curb underworld leads.
Former DIG Malla, however, thinks it equally important to equip the security personnel with better training, tools and working environment.
“The government should enhance investment in technology and training for security personnel,” Malla told Khabarub, “As a single agency can’t execute all these activities, there should be inter-agency coordination, and coordination between the security forces of various nations as the criminals might be operation such activities at international level.”
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