Where is Dawood Ibrahim? Here is all you want to know

Mumbai: The latest Bollywood release, Dhurandhar 2, which has become a hot topic of contention on social media for various reasons, shows underworld don Dawood Ibrahim in a couple of scenes.

The global terrorist is shown as aged, fragile, and bedridden, gasping for breath while talking to senior Pakistani officials and terror group members. The movie also shows an attempt to kill the don using a lethal poison, mostly used by the Russians and Israeli agencies.

Dawood Ibrahim had always been a fascinating subject for Bollywood movies in the past, too. In the real-life world, often there are talks about his activities and condition.

The latest blockbuster has once again raised questions about Dawood’s condition, more so because he has been conspicuously missing from an active lifestyle.

NewsMeter spoke to some senior officials in investigating agencies who have been keeping a watch on underworld activities to assess the real-life situation concerning the global terrorist.

Sources in agencies, though, did not fully validate the condition shown in the movie; however, they said that he is not at all in pink of health and faces serious issues. ‘He has high diabetes and a serious heart condition for which he underwent surgery,’ a senior official said while refusing to go on record.

The official said that Dawood doesn’t move out of his Karachi bungalow called White House, situated in the Clifton area, especially since the random attacks on terror group members began in Pakistan. Several members of terrorist organisations, including Lashkar-e-Taiba, were shot dead recently in public view.

‘He has been advised by Pakistani authorities not to move out of the bungalow,’ the official said, adding that Dawood has delegated work, including finance business as well as underworld activities, to different people.

Dawood is also said to have limited his interactions with family members and associates. ‘He talks to a few chosen associates and members of his family who stay in other countries,’ the officer said.

About those handling Dawood’s business, another intelligence official said that his money laundering, real estate, and investment activities are handled by Jabir Motiwala, alias Jabir Siddiq, a Pakistani national, who was arrested a few years back by the Extradition Unit of Scotland Yard.

Jabir was wanted in the USA for money laundering, smuggling, and extortion. He was extradited to the US despite attempts to stall the same by his well-wishers.

‘Dawood and his trusted high-ranking aides in Pakistan tried hard for his release; however, they failed as there was intense pressure from the US authorities for his extradition,’ said senior crime journalist Vivek Agrawal, who specialises in covering organised crime.

Jabir’s men still oversee Dawood’s money laundering and other financial activities in the United Kingdom and the Middle East countries. His grandfather was the founder of the Lahore Stock Exchange. His family is also into the stock broking business in the Karachi Stock Exchange, where Dawood too is a big-time investor.

Sources said that one of Dawood’s brothers, Mustaqeem, handles the white-collar business involving real estate and hotels in Dubai, as he has no criminal cases registered against him. Mustaqeem is currently in Pakistan, where he went when Ramadan fasting began. ‘However, soon the West Asia war began, and he is said to be stuck in Pakistan,’ said another senior crime journalist, Aziz Malik.

About Dawood’s activities, Malik said he operates from home, and Pakistani ministers and intelligence officials visit him frequently. He also said that Dawood controls the real estate and share market in Karachi.

Sources further said that another crucial aide of the gangster, Chhota Shakeel, has assumed supreme importance in the gang-related activities as he has been assigned the task of completely handling the India-related setup of the gang and all its ranks and files here.

There may be a difference in the premise in Dawood’s reel and real-life situation, but one thing that remains common is that the don is confined to his bungalow and is not in the best of his health.