At first glance, there isn’t lots to split Salim Fruit from the indispensable gangster: a funny-sounding nickname, an origins tale that commenced with losing out of university, a string of failed organizations and being inside and outside of jail in reference to Mumbai underworld’s favored activity – extortion. What places Salim a reduce above the rest, however, is his courting with one of the maximum desired criminals these days and the honour that this routinely earns him withinside the D-Company.
Mohammed Salim Iqbal Qureshi is one of the seven siblings of a mid-stage dealer from South Mumbai. He finished his education from Saifee High School after which took admission to Burhani College. However, quickly after he failed his Higher Secondary exams, he cease university and began out operating at a fruit store.
It became at some stage in this time that he’s stated to have had his first brush with the sector of crime. “At the age of 17, Salim began out making journeys to Pakistan, sporting imitation jewellery, betel leaves and different items,” stated a chum of Salim. “He might fly to Dubai with a stopover in Karachi, and at some stage in the stopover, he might quit his shipment to a touch.”
The pal claimed that it became at some stage in those journeys to Dubai that Salim first got here into touch with Dawood’s brother Anees, and via him with Dawood’s leader lieutenant Chhota Shakeel. A few years later, he married Shazia, whose sister Nazma is married to Chhota Shakeel. Shakeel is thought to deal with all of the daily operations of the group and, alongside together along with his boss, is on the worldwide Most Wanted list.
Salim in advance informed the Mumbai police crime department that it became totally because of his being associated with Shakeel that the police saved interrogating him, an oft-used tactic of law-enforcement businesses who select out up own circle of relatives individuals of desired people. Salim claimed that he grew bored with the ‘harassment’ and shifted to Dubai in 2000, in which he installation a grocery store in Deira.
The police’s suspicion approximately his gang affiliation, however, have become more potent inside a 12 months of Salim’s relocation while he became named as an accused in an extortion case registered in 2001. Salim, at the side of Jameel Haji and Mohammed Sabir Shaikh, had allegedly threatened a businessman, demanding ₹50 lakh on behalf of Shakeel. Police stated it became Salim himself who had allegedly made the call.
Homecoming
In 2006, Salim became arrested through the Dubai police and deported to India in which he became arrested withinside the extortion case and charged beneathneath the stringent provisions of the Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act (MCOCA), 1999. In 2010, however, he became acquitted because of loss of enough evidence. “After being released, Salim endured his overseas journeys beneathneath the pretext of taking place pilgrimage to Saudi Arabia, and allegedly additionally were given worried withinside the gang’s hawala and extortion rackets,” Salim’s pal stated.
Soon, Salim shifted together along with his own circle of relatives to Mir Apartment in Arab Galli and spread out the Garib Nawaz resort in Null Bazaar. His purported tries at constructing a façade of innocence, however, did now no longer remaining long. In 2016, the anti-extortion mobileular arrested accused in a 2004 case of extortion of ₹25 lakh from a doctor. The duo, of their interrogation, named Salim because the caller and this, coupled with the reality that he became in Dubai on the time of the offence, became sufficient to land him at the back of bars.
Three months later, however, he became again at the streets, another time acquitted because of loss of evidence. His call saved developing in numerous instances beneathneath research through the Crime Branch, and it endured to hold tabs on him.
Ascent
In 2014, Salim’s prominence withinside the gang began out rising. Before him, the only man or woman whose phrase became very last became Haseena Parkar, Dawood’s past due sister, who ran the group’s commercial enterprise from her Pakmodia Street residence. When Haseena surpassed away in 2014, Salim have become the simplest direct relative of the pinnacle member of the group and took over the mantle. As his stature and electricity grew, so did his sports.
The police saved an eye fixed on Salim, specifically once they commenced listening to his call in reference to a multi-crore redevelopment venture in South Mumbai. “His connection to the venture, with the form of cash worried, became suspicious,” a senior Crime Branch officer stated. The Crime Branch additionally referred to that over the past 3 years, Salim has visited no much less than 17 to 18 countries, consisting of China, Bangkok, Saudi Arabia, Sri Lanka and Turkey.
Downfall
Circa 2022 became out to be Salim’s nemesis. The National Investigation Agency (NIA) registered an FIR towards Dawood and his near friends beneathneath the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, 1967, and initiated a crackdown on what remained of the D-gang in Mumbai. Salim became amongst the ones arrested.
Fate had one remaining merciless trick to play on him. Just earlier than his arrest, he became contacted through one Vishal Kale, who confident the gangster that he had connections in Delhi and will shop him from arrest. Strangely, the hardened D-gang member believed the conman and is stated to have paid ₹50 lakh to Kale, realising his folly simplest later while Kale himself became arrested for looking to wheedle ₹one hundred crore from senior politicians purportedly in change for buying them ministerial berths.
Several key figures related to the D-gang are actually at the back of bars, a few withinside the custody of the Crime Branch or NIA like Arif Shaikh and his brother Shabbir. All had been charged with dealing with Dawood’s unlawful sports and accumulating cash to finance his terrorist sports.
The federal corporation has to this point carried out searches at 29 places in Mumbai, Mira-Bhayander and Mumbra, and quizzed many different suspects like Suhail Khandwani, a trustee of the Haji Ali and Mahim dargahs, and Guddu Pathan, a relative of Dawood Ibrahim’s brother Iqbal Kaskar. The searches have allegedly caused the seizure of incriminating cloth like digital devices, files of investments in actual estate, coins and firearms.
In February, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) had additionally registered a case beneathneath the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), and arrested Maharashtra minority improvement minister Nawab Malik in February. Mallik is said to have usurped a ₹three hundred crore plot of land in Kurla with Haseena Parkar’s help.