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INTERVIEW
"We
have to eliminate Rajan because he is not just a traitor but is trying
to become a patriot."
An
interview by INDIA TODAY Special Correspondent Sheela Raval.
Chhota
Shakeel, Dawood Ibrahim's lieutenant, who allegedly masterminded
the attack on Chhota Rajan, spoke to INDIA TODAY Special Correspondent
Sheela Raval. Excerpts:
Q. What
was the purpose of your recent Bangkok trip between September 11 and 13?
A. How did you know? I can't tell you the inside story but well, I
visited Bangkok regularly over the past three months. I left the city
just a day before my boys went to his house to kill him. I had to finalise
the operation and escape route for my boys. It was not just an important
operation but also a prestige issue for us and I wanted to check every
little detail before my boys barged into his house to kill him with 9
mm machine guns. We knew that it was a tough task as he was also heavily
armed.
Q. And
yet your operation failed?
A. I am not God. Things went wrong and we made mistakes. But it happens
in such operations. He was lucky but a coward. Instead of facing bullets
like a good warrior, he showed his back and ran away. Anyway, better luck
next time. My man, Munna Jingada (alias Mohammed Saleem), who is in police
custody now is a capable man and he won't miss a second chance. He got
caught because he phoned me from a public booth and his phone was tracked
down immediately.
Q. Why
so much anger and hatred? And if Rohit Verma was your informant, why did
you kill him?
A. There was a misunderstanding among my boys and they did not know
that they had to face him first. We have to eliminate Rajan anyhow because
he is not just a traitor but is trying to become a patriot. Apne ko desh
bhakt samj ne laga hai. Tell me what he has done for India. He is just
another gangster like us. How can a criminal like him be a patriot and,
if he is one then what about kurbani of hundreds of jawans who sacrificed
in the Kargil war?
Q. But
what difference does it make to you?
A. It puts us in a bad light in the eyes of millions of Indians. We
do care about our image. He should stick to his limits. He is responsible
for dividing gangs on religious grounds. He called himself a Hindu don
and we are muslim mafias. The game shoud be equal and fair.
Q. Your
gang is said to have ISI support?
A. What is the proof? On the contrary, we have no doubts that Rajan
is supported by the Indian intelligence and protected by the Indian authorities.
Q. What
makes you believe that Rajan is being protected by the Indian authorities?
A. Rajan's gang managed to execute many accused in the Mumbai bomb
blasts case in past couple of years. He had full support of the then so-called
Hindu government and some of the top people in power. And now he is being
protected by Indian intelligence in Bangkok. We too have high level sources
in the police in Bangkok.
Q. There
is a report in Bangkok that you met Rajan at hotel Tara where you stayed
to negotiate terms on an arms and ammunition deal? Rajan and Rohit Verma
used to come to Tara's gym and that became your meeting point ¦
A. It is true that Munna had opened a room for me at Tara at Sukhumvit
Soi 23. ( Close to Rajan's house and also the Indian Embassy) and I stayed
there during all my Bangkok visits. But I have not met Rajan. Had I met
him there, I would have shot him immediately.
Q. But
that goes against Dawood's instructions not to disturb Thai law and order
because it would cost your business in the country dear?
A. Yes, we did not want to disturb our equation with the Thai authorities.
And that was the reason we had decided to barge into his house. We have
no business in Thailand. We have business in Mumbai and Dubai. It is Rajan
who has spread his illegal business in Thailand and Malaysia and this
is known to the world.
Q. What
about a dollar counterfeit racket busted in Bangkok early January this
year when your aide, Aftab Bhatti, was arrested?
A. Bhatti was Dawoodbai's accountant and used to deal with the gold
unit but he left us five years ago and we have no links with him thereafter.
Q. There
were also reports of the D gang's involvement in arms supply to the LTTE
in Sri Lanka and the entire South-east region.
A. This is ridiculous. What proof do you have? Give me at least one
instance where our men were caught supplying arms.
Q. Last
December just before Operation Elephant Pass in Sri Lanka, a consignment
of arms for LTTE militants fell into Indian waters by mistake. It was
intercepted by Interpol...
A. I don't think so. I have to check out this particular fact myself.
You see Dawoodbai's name is so popular that it is very convenient for
everyone to label us for all wrong doings in India or the South-east region.
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