07 April,2011 07:00 AM IST | | J Dey
Grapevine suggests that the Indian intelligence outsourced the 'kaam' u00a0of bumping off terror suspect to none other than arch rival Chhota Rajan's gang
If reports are to be believed, the Indian intelligence agencies allegedly achieved yet another breakthrough on Monday by bumping off a key associate of Dawood Ibrahim at Karachi.
The eliminated target has been identified as Aga Khan, aka Sharif, aka Chhota Dawood who had been on the list ever since a Red Corner alert was issued against him.
He had been accused of organising terrorist attacks and other criminal activities, as well as dealing in weapons and counterfeit currencies.
Intelligence sources announced that Khan was bumped off by an unidentified gunman on Areya Street, 8th Defence Colony, not far from where Dawood reportedly lives.
The intelligence grapevine, however, suggests that the 'kaam,' or job of bumping off the terror suspect was outsourced to fugitive gangster Chhota Rajan, who is known for his intense 'desh bhakti' and his rivalry with Dawood. The true identity of the assassin is a closely guarded secret.
Senior officers in Mumbai's Anti-Terrorism Squad would neither confirm nor deny that the incident took place on Monday night.
Khan, around 47, is believed to have escaped to Dubai and thereafter to Karachi, in around 2000, after he was accused of several serious offences in Ahmedabad.
He climbed the ranks to become one of Dawood's key lieutenants and lived in the highly-guarded Defence Colony in up-market Karachi. The shootout allegedly took place when Dawood was on a sojourn in Europe, possibly visiting his son.
The killing closely followed the assassination of yet another terror suspect by the Indian intelligence, on the streets of Karachi, in January 5 earlier this year. The needle of suspicion had then pointed to an unknown Mumbai shooter.
The name of incarcerated gangster Babloo Srivastava had also emerged for his alleged role in providing logistical support to the death squad. The back-up team for Monday's shootout could be a few Nepali men posing as businessmen in Karachi.
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They are believed to have been moonlighting for the Indian intelligence.
Sources reported that while one of the shooters was from Mumbai, the others were locals, or from Nepal. They were posing as itinerant salesmen from Kathmandu, carting items like kurtas and sherwanis to Karachi.
Underworld sources claim that the Indian intelligence had earlier pulled off a similar operation by bumping off Dilshad Baig, Dawood's key associate, also a member of Nepal's Parliament.
This assassination too was reportedly achieved in Kathmandu on June 7, 1998, with the help of Rajan's henchmen, Farid Tanasha and Balu Dokre.u00a0
Who was Sharif?
Also known as Aga Khan, a Red Corner alert was issued against him by the Indian intelligence. He had been accused of organising terrorist attacks and other criminal activities, as well as dealing in weapons and counterfeit currencies.
