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Journalism of Courage
Almost after a decade, the law finally caught up with Dawood gangster Santosh Mahadevan in the UAE. He could be deported to Mumbai. Mahadevan is one of the accused named in the J J Hospital shootout on September 22, 1992. Two policemen and rival gangster Arun Gawli’s henchman Sailesh Haldankar was killed after Dawood’s killer squad stormed the premises.
The attack was masterminded by Subash Singh Thakur and Shamkishore Garigapatti Sharma. Slain gangster Sunil Sawant alias Sawtya was one of the main shooters involved in the killings. Though the exact date of his detention is not available, unconfirmed reports indicate he was picked up by officials in Abu Dhabi after his sojourn to Mumbai. He was seen with his family near Nerul in Navi Mumbai.
Mahadevan was inducted into the Dawood gang by his former second-in-command Chhota Rajan in the mid-1980s. He was also considered close to Anil Parab alias Wangia.
The youth from Subash Nagar in Chembur was entrusted the responsibility of smuggling goods under TR (transfer of residence). He was also into the ‘peela’ (gold) business before following Rajan to Dubai.
However, Mahadevan preferred to remain loyal to Dawood even after Rajan broke away from the gang in 1993. He soon shifted his allegiance to Chhota Shakeel.
