D-Company rides again, cops fear reprisal

The Times of India: "For a long time now, he's been lying low in Pakistan. But the uneasy peace that's been prevailing among Mumbai's mafiosi is set to be shattered again. The Don, Dawood Ibrahim, is set to strike back with a vengeance — literally. He's hell-bent on settling scores with old rival Chhota Rajan.

And he's willing to shake hands with anybody who can help him achieve this goal. In the last few weeks, he's reportedly been busy wooing potential lethal weapons, including Ejaz Lakdawala, Guru Satam, Hemant Pujari, Ravi Pujari and Fazlur-Rehman.

Of these, Lakdawala is the 'rising star' of Mumbai's underworld. The police are already calling him the new Abu Salem after the gangster incarcerated in Portugal who targeted the film world.

" Ejaz bol raha hun, jaan pyaari hain to pachas peti ka intezaam kar (This is Ejaz speaking. If you value your life make arrangements for Rs 50 lakh to be paid)": two leading actors and two producers have told the police they have received such threats.

A police officer said Lakdawala, who is suspected to be in Nepal, is trying to establish his presence in Mumbai by targeting not only Bollywood but travel agents, traders and businessmen as well.

"The purpose of the amalgamation is to create a single largest underworld group in Mumbai to finish the rival Chhota Rajan gang and to enjoy a monopoly," he adds.

The Chhota Rajan gang itself is showing signs of resuming activity again. The gang had allegedly planned to gun down diamond pasha cum-Bollywood film producer Bharat Shah last November.

Police sources said the process of creating a "tacit understanding" between Dawood gangsters and those in smaller gangs has been going on for the past six months.

"Dawood has sent out a clear signal to the smaller gangs: the enemy's enemy is always a friend."

His message has worked since a majority of those with whom Dawood wants to ally are former Chhota Rajan aides.

"Satam, Pujari and Lakdawala fell out with Rajan in 2000 and formed their own groups. Dawood is now wooing them," said a crime branch officer.

At present, the Chhota Rajan gang is left with three second rung leaders — Balu Dokreand Bharat Nepali, both of whom run extortion rackets from abroad, and D K Rao, a robber-turned-gangster.

"Dawood's objective is to finish the Rajan gang by eliminating the trio. This is one of the primary reasons why he is teaming up with smaller groups," a police officer says.

Rajan was once a trusted henchman of Dawood, but he parted ways after the serial blasts in Mumbai in March 1993 in which more than 1,000 innocent lives were lost. The blasts were masterminded by the D-Company.

Rajan fled to Malaysia and formed his own gang, targeting Dawood aides responsible for the blasts. Dawood, on the other hand, has been gunning for Rajan's head for the past 12 years.

In September 2000, his cronies had almost zeroed in on Rajan at an apartment in Bangkok, but Rajan escaped with bullet injuries in his chest.

Rajan now operates cautiously, even his second-rung lieutenants don't know about his exact whereabouts. This is because one of his own trusted gang members had tipped off Dawood, leading to the attack in 2000.

According to police sources, Rajan is now in Europe.

Said a senior officer, "Dawood has protection from Pakistan's Inter-Services Intelligence in Karachi. He is lying low as there is pressure on Pervez Musharraf from the US which has declared Dawood a global terrorist."

But Dawood seems keen on regrouping his gang in Mumbai and strengthening its activities.

Till then, the smaller gangs will continue to operate on their own.

For example, Satam has extortion rackets in areas like Bhoiwada and Kalachowkie; Lakdawala is trying to get a foothold in extortion in the Hindi film industry; Fazlur-Rehman targets businessmen and traders.

They may not be content to act as vassals to Dawood in the long run, but in the short term, at least, they might be willing to ally with him against Rajan. "