Who's the next underworld kingpin to rule Mumbai?

Mumbai: It is the 'don' of a new era as the underworld is abuzz with who will be the next kingpin to rule the high seas, a coveted area of operation which is not only lucrative but also dangerous across the seven islands.

The daylight murder of Chand Sayed Madar in September was an indicator that he had outlived his utility. Chand was also involved in paani ka kaam or working on the high seas.

The booking of Mohammed Ali for Chand's murder was like killing two birds with one stone. Ali had become too big for his boots and crossed swords with some local politicians and senior police officers.

New Kingpin

Even as the Crime Branch's investigations revolve around the murder, the motive could be linked to taking over the business from Madar or Chandbhai, as he is known. It could also mean installing a new kingpin, which often happens with the blessings of some corrupt cops.

The new kingpin could be Paaniwalla Sadru. There are others like Rafiq, Battiwala, Munna Maldar, Murugan, Santosh and Sadiq who are all trying to corner the lion's share of income from diesel smuggling. Then again, the next man could be a D Company nominee.

The gang not only wants to control the Rs 1,000-crore diesel business, but also the smuggling of contraband to the grey market hubs at Manish Market and Musafirkhana. Tonnes of goods are transported across the Carnac Bunder Bridge to hundreds of dingy kiosks.

Pivotal arm

Paani ka kaam is one of the most important arms of Mumbai's underworld. For the gangs, it means controlling the littoral waters and landing of contraband into the city. A stark reminder is the arms and ammunition, which was dumped by Dawood Ibrahim and Tiger Memon's associates along the Raigad coast resulting in the serial blasts in 1993. Paani ka kaam or smuggling on the high seas is a very lucrative business estimated at Rs 1,000 crore annually, but, like anything with high returns, the risks are high too.

It is also one of the most dangerous areas for the underworld to operate within. One of the earliest paani ka kaam wallahs was Haji Mastan in the late 1960s and early 1970s. He was soon ousted by Dawood Ibrahim who was launched by Mastan in the smuggling business.

Another case in point is Yusuf Kasargod alias Yusuf Handsome. He was forced to leave Mumbai and head for his village in Kerala. The list is long. Paani ka kaam on the high seas has always attracted members of the Dawood Ibrahim gang. Even the explosives used in the 1993 serial blasts were smuggled through the sea route in Raigad district.

Deadly duo

A new theory gaining ground in Mumbai's underworld is that a pair called Tingubhai and Langdabhai is interested in paani ka kaam. The duo was considered close to Dawood Ibrahim's right-hand-man, Chhota Shakeel. 

The Tingu-Langda duo decided to take over paani ka kaam from most of the small timers. They want to buy up all the redundant boats and barges needed for paani ka kaam.

Slain Chand was an obstacle. Despite the mounting police raids, he did succumb to pressure tactics of the thugs Tingu and Langda, both white-collar lieutenants. The majority of the paani ka kaam wallahs found favour with Dawood's younger brother Anis. Tingu and Langda were aligned to the Shakeel faction.

Marking territory

Even as various gangs were marking their territories, Additional Commissioner of Police (south region) R K Padmanabhan stepped up patrolling along the coast.

This seriously affected the paani ka kaam in the Mumbai harbour. As a fallout of this increased patrolling, business shrunk.

Chand though, continued to hold on to his alleged shipping business with the help of his cronies.  "We are checking all possible angles," Padmanabhan told MiD DAY when asked about the murder.

Changing fortunes

Though the seas are tinged with blood, paani ka kaam has changed the fortunes of many. While some involved were hardcore underworld operatives, others operated from the fringes without getting dragged into sinister crime.

It is the proverbial rags to riches story for most. People who started as 'apprentice' killers (a gory label but necessary to understand the hierarchy of the crime world) have ended up as rich owners of 200 or more tankers.

For more than three decades, the walls of the Mumbai docks have witnessed the rise and fall of Mumbai's mafia kingpins. If docks could speak, they would whisper about dubious triumphs and downfalls, truth and betrayal, life and death...

Cartons to containers

In the early 1970s, when the tonnage of goods in the Bombay Port was steadily rising, there was enough work for the 1,000 odd workers as well as enough overtime, to keep port workers happy. It was common to see about 100 coolies eating snacks together after work.

Hectic work and the extra money was a windfall to the dozen restaurateurs operating in the Carnac Bunder area. Unknown to the port workers though, a motley group became active those days, after the workers had returned home.

First, they jumped over the walls and broke into petty consignments, beginning with lifting small parcels, and then slowly getting more ambitious. Soon, the thieves were looting cartons and later, entire containers.

Restaurant watch

Police sources say that Haji Mastan and his trusted lieutenants headed the group. Particularly promising amongst them was one Paul Patrick Newman. Slowly, stealthily but surely Mumbai's underworld was being nurtured. Mastan's men operated out of the Crescent House, off the docks.

The cluster of the buildings in the area became an ideal spot for handling stolen goods and loading them onto tempos to be dispatched onward to their destinations across the city. Most of the activities were monitored from a local restaurant in the area.

Textiles & tape recorders

Increase in the tonnage in the port operations saw adequate underworld recruitment too. Small-time thieves and hooligans joined Mastan's team, almost gaining a free run in the 720-hectare land in the port zone.

But the 1980s tonnage in the port shot up to more than 1,70,000 dead weight tonnes per annum. The volume of pilferage rose too and truckloads of contraband were being delivered across Carnac Bunder to Musafirkhana and Manish Market.

The smuggled cargo mostly comprised beer cans, textiles, tape recorders, cigarettes, perfumes and automatic watches. The goods could be easily traced to Musafirkhana, some shops in Heera Panna and many customs notified shops across the city.

Dons line up

The money from the docks' prosperity saw the once sleepy business district of Ballard Pier in South Mumbai morph and get a dubious vivacity. It became an area where hotels did brisk business and nightlife grew, with prostitutes lining up at the corner.

Soon, a strong competitor to Mastan emerged in the form of Afghan national, Karim Lala. After the duo divided their business, Mirchi Seth joined Lala. There was huge money in drugs smuggling and Dawood Ibrahim then made an attempt to corner a lion's share of the income.

Lala had the backing of the Pathan brothers, Amirzada and Alamzeb. Dawood had to seek the help of the Byculla Company, particularly Babu Reshim. Dharavi-based don Vardharajan Mudaliar alias Vardhabhai and his henchmen also threw their hats into the ring. Urban dacoit Manya Surve also joined the fray.

Switch needed

By the '90s, smugglers found safe landing sites in the mangroves of Sewri-Wadala, Worli and Mahim. Some of the contraband was loaded onto small ships and ferried to distant jetties like Versova, Gorai and even Ratnagiri. With the opening of the economy, foreign goods were easily available in Indian markets. The demand for branded goods diminished.

Cloth from the state-of-the-art textile mills replaced Boski and Stretchlon fabrics, which were in great demand till the late 1980s. Dawood Ibrahim and his cronies were left with very little choice but to shift their business to new areas like diesel smuggling. New operators like Chand and Sadru and jumped on to the bandwagon.

Now, diesel

Merchant vessels plying in and around Mumbai bring in a windfall to the smugglers in the city. Diesel from merchant vessels is smuggled in connivance with the ship's master (captain) and other senior officers. The agent clinches the deal even before the ship reaches Mumbai harbour.

Some shipping companies from countries like Indonesia and Philippines have agents in Mumbai. The agent acts as a point man and also helps in negotiating with the racketeers. They work on commission.

Austerity drive

What is worrisome is the fact all the payments are made in dollars and this gives a fillip to the burgeoning hawala trade in the city. Ship owners usually sanction a specified quantity of diesel for running the engine and other auxiliary machinery while sailing.

The captain of the ship and a few senior officers go on an austerity drive to save fuel. Marine logbooks on the ships are fudged by crewmembers to show a high consumption pattern. Generally, air conditioners and other machines are switched off to save fuel. The purloined diesel is bought at around Rs 12 per litre and sold at profits between Rs 6 to Rs 8 per litre.

Towards Lonavala

Investigations carried out by MiD DAY indicated that consignments are smuggled to makeshift jetties in Navi Mumbai. Diesel is immediately loaded on to waiting tankers which head towards Lonavala, Pune, Kolhapur and up to Belgaum.

The drivers of the tankers are provided with fake bills, a precaution if intercepted along the route. In most cases a sizeable hafta is ensured for officials of the channels through which the consignment is passing.

Mafioso links

The mafia has strong links with dubious petrol pump owners. The stolen diesel is dumped into the tanks of the petrol pump under cover of darkness. "Since diesel is sold clandestinely at cheap rates, it is a great loss to the state exchequer," said an excise officer, who did not want to be named.

The route

The sea-going tugs used for smuggling diesel sail out of the harbour in darkness and head for 'Bravo' anchorage, about 20 nautical miles off Mumbai harbour. The consignment is offloaded in less than an hour.  The diesel-laden tugs and similar vessel head for sensitive Raigad coast through Murud-Janjira.

The consignment is transferred in 200 litre cans, which is later filled into dredger and small crafts. Thus, goes on the most dangerous, coveted and lucrative businesses of the underworld where human life is cheap, the crash of waves drown out the gunshots and ghosts of the dead stay buried 20,000 leagues under the sea.