File photo of Dawood Ibrahim
Former Maharashtra Chief Minister Sharad Pawar has confirmed that he was approached by a senior lawyer over underworld don, Dawood Ibrahim's willingness to surrender to Indian authorities.
The offer was made through renowned lawyer Ram Jethmalani, but the conditions put forward for it were not acceptable to the state government.
Mr Pawar was the Chief Minister in 1990s when the offer was made.
The 74 year old leader said, "It is true that Ram Jethmalani had given a proposal about Dawood's willingness to return. But there was a condition that Dawood should not be kept in jail. Rather he should be allowed to remain in a house. This was not acceptable. We said he had to face the law."
Mr Pawar who left the Congress party to form his own party, the Nationalist Congress Party in 1999, was answering questions on Mr Jethmalani's charge that the state government had rejected an offer by Dawood to return to India.
Dawood Ibrahim is on India's most wanted list for the 1993 blasts in Mumbai that killed over 300 people.