08 October,2010 07:32 AM IST | | J Dey
Special squads of Mumbai Police are probing into the fund collection drives by the city's underworld gangs that target small and medium businesses in the name of Navratri celebrations
That the preparation for Navratri celebrations run parallel to the collection drives of gangsters is nothing new. It happens every year.
As a senior police officer pointed out, almost all Hindu gangsters and their cronies are directly or indirectly associated to some or the other Navratri mandals, and their gangs collect money from businessmen on behalf of the mandals.
A lavish pandal is being constructed in Dagdi Chawl, a stronghold of the incarcerated gangster Arun Gawli
But this time around, a special operation by Mumbai Police is probing into the blatant extortion in the name of Navratri by underworld gangs, which in the past few weeks, has run up to the tune of Rs 100 crore.
Special squads have been formed to keep a tab on the Navratri pandals that officials suspect are financed by underworld gangs.
The Joint Commissioner of Police (crime) Himanshu Roy told MiD DAY that the police are trying to trace the source of mandal funds thought to be coming from the underworld.
Under the scanner
At the centre of the investigation is the Navratri celebration at Dagdi chawl in Byculla - a stronghold of the incarcerated gangster Arun Gawli.
The chawl came under the scanner after police arrested Gawli's right-hand-man Sunil Ghate for a festival-related extortion at Agripada in south Mumbai.
Also being looked into is the source of funding for the celebration at what is popularly called 144 Tenements - a stronghold of slain gangster Amar Naik at Lower Parel.
At Kanjurmarg, it is murdered gangster Ashok Joshi's protege who is running the show, and in the northern suburbs, the Chhota Rajan gang has gone on a collection spree.
They usually target builders and businessmen, officials said.
Police say that all small-time shopkeepers, vendors and coolies in and around Byculla have been netted to contribute to the gangsters' coffers.
A copy of a document available with MiDDAY indicates that gang members have also targeted hotel owners and jewelers, across the city.
A chunk of the money so collected is utilised in developing the underworld network and buying properties.
Cost to consumers
Despite the wide and blatant collection drives by gangsters, police records show that complaints are rarely registered, as businessmen do not want to fall foul of the gangsters.
Since they feel they are left with no option but to pay up, they make up for the losses by passing on the costs to their customers.
However, lately, the foot soldiers of various gangs, including the Arun Gawli gang, have been disenchanted.
They seldom see the money they collect on behalf of the big bosses as most of it goes to the dons.
So they form splinter groups, collecting on their own, and add to the burden of the businessmen, and thereby, consumers.
Other than these breakaway groups, police sources said that a number of old-time criminals who haven't been active in the city and have migrated to nearby areas like Pune, Nashik and Sangli, also make a comeback during Navratri.
But with the special squads, the police say they are on the lookout.
Extortion game
Gangs begin extorting money more than a month before the festival. This year the collective extortion has run up to Rs 100 crore.
Businessmen and builders in central Mumbai have been coughing up anything between Rs 5000 and Rs 5 lakh.
Businessmen in Kanjurmarg have to pay up around Rs 500 per shop.
Some hotels in Juhu have been paying up to Rs 20 lakh.
