Mumbai Police 'Kept in Dark' on Plan to Arrest Chhota Rajan, Say Sources

Mumbai: The plan to arrest Chhota Rajan, the most-wanted gangster caught in Indonesia, was reportedly not shared with the police in Mumbai, though he is wanted for at least 17 murders in the city, besides cases of extortion, drug trafficking and arms smuggling.

Rajan, 55, was arrested on Sunday, soon after he arrived in the resort island of Bali from Sydney.

Sources say the Mumbai police was not part of the plan to catch him, which involved close coordination between the Indian security agencies, mainly the CBI, and the police in Australia and Indonesia.

Based on inputs from the CBI, the Australian police had tipped off Bali about Rajan's arrival; they were to look out for a passenger with an Indian passport in the name of Mohan Kumar.

Rajan, a close aide of underworld don and terror boss Dawood Ibrahim turned his bitter rival, evaded the police in several countries for over two decades.

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After his arrest, questions have been raised about whether Rajan wanted the safety of Indian jails to escape Dawood Ibrahim, who has made several attempts to kill him.

Sources say Rajan's arrest could be a precursor to anti-Dawood operations planned by security agencies. Rajan could provide vital inputs on Dawood, who is believed to be in Karachi in Pakistan, and his "D-Gang", it is believed.

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The strongest case against Rajan is in Mumbai, involving the killing of crime journalist Jyotirmoy Dey in 2011.

The Mumbai police has been caught short in the case earlier, when Rajan famously escaped from a heavily-guarded hospital in Bangkok after surviving an assassination attempt by Dawood's men.

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One of Rajan's aides later told the police that they were helped by Indian officials.

There is no official confirmation, but Rajan's hand in eliminating anti-India and pro-Pakistani elements in the 1990s is well-established folklore within the security circuit.

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There were reports that the security establishment leaned on Rajan's network to kill Dawood Ibrahim in 2005 when his daughter was getting married to the son of legendary Pakistani Cricketer Javed Miandad. The plan failed.