 | | PICTURE SPEAK | |  | | LOST CAUSE: Gujjar in his prime; (top) a gory end | | The forests of Chambal are breathing easy: they have finally been rid of the man who faced more than 180 criminal cases, mostly involving murder and kidnapping, and carried a reward of Rs 2.5 lakh on his head. Last week, Nirbhay Singh Gujjar, a dacoit who kept the Uttar Pradesh government on its knees for 10 long years much in the mould of Phoolan Devi, was slain by the Uttar Pradesh Special Task Force (STF). Gujjar's bravado in front of the TV cameras and his open challenge to the police and politicians proved only a veneer for his growing desperation, and culminated in his death while in a drunken stupor. On October 9, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Mulayam Singh Yadav and his Madhya Pradesh counterpart Babulal Gaur met in Lucknow and declared a "zero tolerance" policy. The two governments refused to stage a gala surrender like the ones for Phoolan Devi and the reformed Malkhan Singh, saying the dacoits could surrender in a court if they so desired, thus ruling out the option Gujjar had sought for long. The STF, which had been zeroing in on Gujjar, finally tightened its noose on November 7 when he took shelter in a house at Cheetapur village near Ajitmal in Etawah. Some of his gang members, who had turned informers without his knowledge, got him drunk, left the house and alerted the STF. Earlier, the STF, under Senior Superintendent of Police Akhil Kumar, had also mapped Gujjar's location in the jungles of Ajitmal because the dacoit used mobile phones for running his kidnapping operations. The entire STF team has now been given out-of-turn promotions by Mulayam. "Gujjar had become vulnerable. This happens to every dacoit after he has avenged all the perceived wrongs and made a killing in ransom and extortion. That is the time he is the most insecure about the future and wants a way out," says ADG (CID) Vijay Raman, who has had one of the longest and most successful stints in the dacoit-infested Chambal region. The most wanted dacoit in the ravines bordering Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh, Gujjar started the "satellite gang" culture. While he relaxed in the dense forests and ravines, the satellite gangs would go about organising kidnappings. These dacoits would then hand over the pakad (victim) to Gujjar, who would give them 10 per cent of the total ransom. These gangs were spread out as far as Kanpur, Agra, even Delhi. Gujjar, who also had 28 cases registered against him across the border in Madhya Pradesh, amassed great wealth through such kidnappings. | | CHAMBAL'S DACOITS | | Terror at Large | | PICTURE SPEAK | |  | | MOST WANTED: The Gadaria gang | | Uttar Pradesh may have managed to dispose of Nirbhay Gujjar, but the police across the state boundary in Madhya Pradesh cannot afford to breathe easy. A number of gangs continue to stalk the Chambal ravines, with the Gadaria gang one of the most feared. Wanted in 75 cases, including two dozen murders, the Gadaria brothers carry a reward of Rs 5 lakh each on their heads. The state police have failed to hunt them down after they escaped from the police custody while being taken to a court at Dabra, a small town near Gwalior. On October 29 last year, the gang gunned down 13 people of the Gujjar community at Bhanwarpura village of Gwalior district. Subsequently, several Gujjar dacoits, including Nirbhay, had vowed to gun down the Gadaria gang, but in vain. While Gujjar's flashy lifestyle brought about his downfall-the police traced his movements through his mobile phone-capturing the Gadarias in the maze of Chambal ravines is far more difficult. The gang members are not tech-savvy, are not known to use mobile phones and even their firearms are obsolete. They don't speak to the media and in many ways are considered "primitive". What they lack in wherewithal, the Gadaria members make up in ferocity and shrewdness. Says S.S. Shukla, additional director-general of police, Special Operations, who heads the force deployed to nab the Gadaria brothers: "It is more difficult to track down the dacoits in the belt running from the Shivpuri forests up to Bara district in Rajasthan, where the Gadaria gang is known to operate, than to do so in the ravines." Currently, the gang comprises three members. With the police turning on the heat, one of the members, Kamlesh Gadaria, surrendered before a court in Gwalior in September this year. Earlier in February, the Arvind Gujjar gang had laid down its arms. Some dacoits have also been shot down over the past year, including the dreaded Hazrat Rawat, who carried a reward of Rs 50,000 on his head and was slain in February. A few months ago, Dhuanram Gujjar, who operated in Rajasthan and the border district of Morena in Madhya Pradesh, was also gunned down. However, Vakila Gujjar, who operates around Gwalior and often crosses the border to Rajasthan, is still at large. Thokiyaa, alias Ambika Patel, alias Doctor, who has been terrorising the region around Chitrakoot for some time, is among the 19 gang leaders in the state. Others include Dadua, Kallu Goud, alias Shivkumar, Rewa's Kapidhvaj Singh, who carries a reward of Rs 25,000 on his head, Neeraj Pratap Singh of Panna district and Aabid, alias Sharif Khan, alias Chhota Daud, who operates out of Chittorgarh in Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh. Due to the recent success against dacoits in the Gwalior-Chambal region, there is a growing feeling that the two state governments should join their forces to curb the menace along the border.
-By Ambreesh Mishra
| | Gujjar loved the good life-wine, women, mobile phones and arclights-and with the money at his disposal he lived a lavish one. With time, however, his drinking and womanising-Seema Parihar, Munni Pandey and Neelam were only some of the women in his gang-became worse. The money also helped Gujjar acquire sophisticated binoculars and matchless firepower, including ak-47s and light machine guns. It is not clear if the STF has recovered the cache. |  "We were given a mission and I'm glad we accomplished it."
AKHIL KUMAR, SSP, SPECIAL TASK FORCE | | Gujjar had been a cause of great embarrassment for the chief minister mainly because he operated from Etawah, Mulayam's hometurf. In fact, Gujjar openly boasted that he and Mulayam were the town's "two lions". The chief minister had also faced criticism from the state Opposition and the UPA Government for the deteriorating law and order situation. With Gujjar's killing, things may finally begin to improve.
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