Unmaking of Mumbra: From a farmland to a terror hideout

Mumbra has emerged as a favourite hideout of suspected terror operativesThe real tragedy of Mumbra doesnt lie in its haphazardly burgeoning urban sprawl but in its relaxed tenancy rules and the illegalities they birth For over a year the ghetto town some 50 km north of Mumbai has been on the radar of counterterrorism agencies mdash four youths linked to terror outfits lived in Mumbra Add to the mix illegal African migrants and the result is a safe haven for criminalsIn over a year counterterror agencies have found four persons with ties to Mumbra mdashMudabbir Shaikh alleged ISIS recruiter arrested from Amrut Nagar in January 2016 Tabrez Tambe who allegedly fled the country to join the ISIS in December last year Farhan Shaikh who spent his childhood in Dost building near Kausa and was deported from Dubai for alleged terror links in the last week of January this year and Umar Nazim alias Nazim Shamshad Ahmed 26 alleged terror outfit recruit arrested from Rashid compound by the Uttar Pradesh ATS and the Maharashtra Police on Thursday All four stayed in rented flats Mudabbir later bought the apartment he stayed in His fatherinlaw was a real estate agent but had no inkling of Shaikhs terror connectionsUmar Nazim the terror suspect arrested on ThursdayNo background checkSources say its the absence of stringent checks on leave and licence agreements that has turned Mumbra mdash once a farmland mdash into a new hideout for criminals A number of buildings in the area are allegedly illegal prompting most of the landlords skip background checks of their potential tenants A fat rent in hand silences even the most rigorous the sources sayThanks to the relaxed rules Mumbras neighbouring locality Diva has become a favourite with illegal migrants from African countries The common refrain in the Mudabbir Tabrez and Nazim cases is how little the neighbours knew of them The suspected terror operatives were recluses and usually kept to themselves neighbours tell middayLarge groups of Muslims shifted to Mumbra after the 1993 blastsRavindra Tayade senior inspector of Mumbra police station says the repeated focus on the areas illegalities have prompted the police to convene meetings with real estate agents and housing society members We tell them that police verification is mandatory We have held over five such meetings in Mumbra and Diva cautioning people against giving renting their houses to strangersMumbras disrepute has made the police even put up banners in Diva asking residents not to rent flats to illegal Nigerian nationals We have registered more than 15 cases against such flats owners in Diva People should come keep an eye out for antisocial elements says TayadeToday 80 per cent of the population comprises Muslims File picsCrooked agentsSayyed Mohammed Hussain chairman of MumbraKausa Real Estate Agent Association which has 270 members however insists that residents have been following guidelines Every new member is told that police verification is mandatoryHussain alleges that crooked real estate agents turned Mumbra and its abutting localities ShilDaighar and Kausa into a hub of antisocial activities Real estate sector is free for all Anyone can become an agent and hand over flats on rent without the necessary checks At the end of it Mumbra and its people have to suffer the tarnished reputation Unauthorised real estate agents should be bannedNo background checksA local activist alleges that real estate agents get away without background checks by bribing police officials The police should joins hands with people in keeping a watch on neighbours A vigilante group should be formed to keep tabs he suggests Residents allege that they have been facing harassment since Mumbra came into the terror spotlightParambir Singh Commissioner of Police Thane assured a crackdown on unauthorised agents If they are found guilty of skipping due process we booked them under relevant charges The Mumbra police have booked flat owners under Section 188 Disobedience to order duly promulgated by public servant of the Indian Penal Code in the last few yearsTotal population 10 lakhNo of terror cases 4Approx no of illegal migrants 50000