Alleged drug trafficker and business tycoon Ali Punjani, who was admitted to Bandra-based Asian Heart Institute where he underwent angioplasty, was discharged on Thursday. Sources told mid-day that Punjani has now come on the radar of the Mumbai police. A senior doctor from the hospital confirmed to mid-day that Punjani had been discharged. Punjani, along with a woman and two men boarded a chauffeur-driven car and reached a five-star hotel barely a kilometre away from the hospital, the source told mid-day. mid-day visited the hotel, but Punjani and his family members refused to speak. However, another source told mid-day that the hotel room, in which Punjani has been staying, had been booked against the name of a woman who accompanied Punjani, who claimed to be his sister.

Punjani was discharged from the hospital at 4 pm. Sources told mid-day that he had learnt about mid-day photographer waiting outside the hospital premises. "In a bid to dodge the media, Punjani and his relatives boarded the car from inside and rushed to the hotel, where they had made an online booking after learning that they were under the scanner of the Mumbai police. Ahead of discharging him from the hospital, the executives from the administrative department of the hospital, the doctor who conducted Punjani's treatment and the senior officials of the hospital met him, apparently to give tips to stay in good health," the source said. After reaching the hotel premises, Punjani was seen walking to the reception counter, from where he walked to the elevator to reach his pre-booked suite in the hotel along with his companions.