Killed for a Song

Today, the Gulshan Kumar killing is a forgotten episode. Few even remember that it is Kumar who rebuilt the Shiva temple in whose precincts he was gunned down allegedly by underworld don Abu Salem8217;s henchmen.

Though 18 out of the 19 accused were acquitted in this case that went across international borders in April 2002, for friends and family of Gulshan Kumar it is far from over. On condition of anonymity a close friend said, 8216;8216;The investigation must be reopened, there are too many unanswered questions.8217;8217;

The family now awaits the return of one of the prime accused, music director Nadeem Akhtar Saifee from London, where he has been since July 12, 1997. Today he is an absconding accused. Though named in the chargesheet, charges will be framed against Nadeem only after his return, said police sources.

When is that expected? According to a police officer involved with the case, 8216;8216;Nadeem will be arrested when he comes back. There are too many questions we have to ask him. Since the extradition could not go through we are awaiting his return. We are hopeful of netting him one day.8217;8217; Nadeem has categorically stated that he will return only if the cases against him are dropped.

As the police, family and friends await the music director8217;s return, Nadeem has been composing music with his other half Shravan. They8217;ve teamed up again with another accused-now-acquitted Ramesh Taurani, proprietor of Tips Cassettes.

Meanwhile, Gulshan Kumar8217;s son, 23-year old Bhushan, is at the helm of affairs at Super Cassettes. Like his father, the son has scripted his own success story.

However, this success has made close friends of the Kumar family wary. According to sources there is still fear that the underworld may strike again. 8216;8216;There were too many accused and the charges could not be proved. But they were involved all the same,8217;8217; said a friend.

The Gulshan Kumar murder case managed to stay on the front pages of newspapers from August 1997 to April 2002, when the verdict was pronounced.

Kumar was gunned down in 1997 by three youth soon after he came out of the Shiva temple. Incidentally, that morning Kumar8217;s bodyguard provided to him by the Uttar Pradesh government was not with him. He had pleaded illness and stayed away from work.

In filmy style the pistol wielding youth had asked Kumar if he had finished his pooja and then said: 8216;8216;Bahut pooja kiya, baaki upar kar le.8217;8217; As he was shot in the temple at point blank range by the first bullet, Kumar dropped the pooja plate. Even as he got up and tried to find a place to hide, they pumped 17 bullets into him. Kumar staggered a few steps and dropped dead.

Subsequent investigations revealed the alleged involvement of Taurani. He was arrested for 8216;abetting8217; the murder. The then investigating officer L R Rao had stated that though the police did not have a conclusive motive for Taurani they had enough to show his involvement. It appeared that Kumar was undercutting prices very sharply leading to heavy business losses for Taurani.

In their chargesheet, the police claimed that Taurani, also a big player in the music industry, had paid Rs 25 lakh to underworld don Abu Salem through Nadeem for killing Kumar. According to the police the real motive of the murder was Nadeem8217;s strained relationship with Kumar.

Key unanswered questions in the case pointed to an investigation that was flawed. Abdul Rauf alias Dawood Merchant, the only one who was convicted, could have been arrested within two months of Kumar8217;s murder. Instead it took the police three years to nab Merchant. Even after conviction, there appears to be no clear motive for Merchant to have killed Kumar.

In another instance, Taurani was granted bail because the police could not file a remand application on time. Investigating officer Rao had then said that his constable had not checked the court papers properly resulting in their failure to file the remand application.

Though the Bow Street Court in the UK was in favour of Nadeem8217;s extradition, the Mumbai Police failed to make out a watertight extradition case. Meanwhile, Kumar8217;s family is still waiting for Nadeem8217;s return.