Reprisal killing

MUMBAI, January 9: In what seems to be a reprisal for the Lalit Shah killing on Wednesday, a close-aide of ganglord Ashwin Naik was shot at ...

MUMBAI, January 9: In what seems to be a reprisal for the Lalit Shah killing on Wednesday, a close-aide of ganglord Ashwin Naik was shot at by two gunmen on Friday morning.

According to police, around mid-day while Dinesh Sakharam Jathar alias Abu was sitting outside his residence at New German Chawl, Tulsiwadi in Tardeo, two men approached him and pumped two bullets in his head at point blank range. The duo then walked away calmly.

However, eyewitnesses said that two persons approached Jathar when he was standing near his house with some friends. The duo dragged the victim between two trucks parked on the roadside and fired at him.

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Jathar, who collapsed on being hit by the bullets was rushed to the nearby Nair Hospital by his colleagues, where he was battling for life till going to the press.

The tar road, opposite Rosewood Hotel, was splattered with blood. The incident sent shockwaves in the locality. Tension prevailed in the area soon after the incident as local shop owners pulled down shutters immediately after the shootout.

Deputy Commissioner of Police (zone-II) Param Bir Singh claims, "Prima facie it appears that Jathar was killed by Gawli gang shooters to avenge the gunning of Lalit Shah on January 7." The police are interrogating Jathar’s close associates to identify the killers, he added.

According to assistant inspector of police (API) Praful Bhosale, Jathar was involved in eight extortion cases in the suburbs of Tardeo, Dadar and Matunga. He did most of the collection work for Amar Naik and later his brother Ashwin. It was his unflinching loyalty to the Naiks that got him into trouble, said Bhosale.

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Every underworld gang has a scout who hunts for extortion victims who can fund the gangs. Lalit Shah had been a scout to the Arun Gawli gang, while Jathar was to Ashwin Naik, remarked Bhosale.

A local shopowner requesting anonymity said that Jathar used to threaten local businessmen and collected money.

Senior police inspector of the Tardeo police station L R Desai said that five casesof extortions, robbery and stabbing have been registered against Jathar in Tardeo police station and three other cases in Azad Maidan and CID, crime branch.

Reportedly there was some communication gap in the police echelons on the condition of Jathar. While speaking to press persons, Joint Police Commissioner (Crime) R S Sharma had said that Jathar had succumbed to his injuries, while inquiries with the zonal police revealed that Jathar was shifted to Harkisondas Hospital for a CT scan, where he continues to be in critical condition.