Hours after leader of Opposition Devendra Fadnavis sought to link him to the underworld by alleging that he and his family had purchased a huge plot of land at “a throw-away price” from two henchmen of Karachi-based Dawood Ibrahim, Maharashtra Minister Nawab Malik on Tuesday threatened to drop a “hydrogen bomb” on Wednesday seeking to expose Fadnavis’ mafia links when the latter was the CM between 2014 and 2019.
Delivering on what he had called his promise of “a post-Diwali blast”, Fadnavis accused Malik of having purchased 2.80 acre plot of land from the “front man” of Dawood’s sister Haseena Parker — Mohammad Salim Patel — and 1993 blasts accused and Badshah Khan at a throw away price in 2005.
Releasing the documents relating to a 16-year-old transaction at his much-awaited news conference, Fadnavis said M/s Solidus Investments Pvt Ltd (SIPL), a firm linked to Malik, had struck a “land deal” with Mohammed Salim Ishaq Patel and Sardar Shahvali Khan, both close aides of Dawood. “Shavali Khan is a convict sentenced to life imprisonment in the March 1993 Mumbai serial bomb blasts,” he said.
Fadnavis charged that there was a “direct underworld” connection in the deal involving the purchase of a prime plot of land worth several crores located on LBS Marg at Kurla in north-central Mumbai by Malik-linked SIPL for mere Rs 30 lakh. Malik’s son signed the “land deal”.
Demanding a probe into the “land deal” by a competent authority, the former Chief Minister said, “There is a direct connection in the land deal with the underworld. I have documents of five property deals. Four properties purchased were linked to the underworld. I will hand over the documents to the competent authorities -it could be the police, ED or NIA and demand a probe. As promised, I will also hand over copies of the land deal documents to NCP chief Sharad Pawar”.
Charging that Malik did a “land deal” with two individuals involved in the serial blasts that rocked Mumbai in 1993, Fadnavis said, “His (Malik’s) family purchased land from two Dawood’s aides at rates cheaper than market prices. The two were about to get convicted under the TADA (Terrorist and Disruptive Activities Prevention Act). Under TADA, all properties of convicts get attached and come under government control. Looks like the duo sought and got the help of Malik to save prime land from being attached under TADA law.”
“At a time when the market rate was Rs 2,053 per square foot in that vicinity of Kurla, Malik’s family bought the prime plot of land at the rate of Rs 15 per square foot ( the deal was initially made for Rs 25 per square feet and the rate was brought down to Rs 15 per square feet. In all, Malik’s family paid a small sum of Rs 30 lakh to purchase a property worth several crores,” the Leader of the Opposition said.
Fadnavis said the land deal was executed when Malik was a minister in the previous Congress-NCP Government at that time.
On his part, Malik dismissed Fadnavis’ allegations by saying the latter was making “a mountain out of a mole hill” and said that the much-touted about “a post-Diwali blast” fizzled out even before it could be heard.
“My request to all of you is to wait for a hydrogen bomb that I intend to drop at my news conference to be held at 10 am tomorrow wherein I will expose with documents Fadnavis’ links with the underworld and how he held Mumbai at ransom through a top police officer when he was the chief minister between 2014 and 2019 with the help of an underworld don based abroad,” Malik said.
Daring Fadnavis to approach any investigating agency for a probe into the allegations made by him, Malik said, “For the first time in 62 years of life in Mumbai, someone has linked me to the underworld when there is none. I am not the one get scared by these kinds of allegations. I am prepared to face any kind of inquiry - be it by the CBI or ED.”
On the “questionable” land deal that his family struck at Kurla in 2005, Malik said, “The deal in question was getting ownership rights as we were the tenants of a landlady (the Goawala Compound owner) who had vested her Power of Attorney (PoA) with Mohammed Salim Ishaq Patel. A housing society ‘Madinatul Aman CHS’, with over 125 tenants was already there since 1984 and on the adjoining plot there are slums. We paid whatever applicable duty to the Government to purchase the rights. So how is Fadnavis saying we created fake tenancy rights to grab the plot at throwaway rates?”
The NCP leader said when they went to register their ownership rights, they discovered that the father of Sardar Shahvali Khan - who used to work as a watchman -- had grabbed 300 metres of the plot and the latter’s name figured in the land records. “We paid money to Khan’s father and purchased the rights for that small piece of land,” Malik said.
“It’s a known fact that Sardar Shahvali Khan was a convict in the March 1993 Mumbai serial bomb blasts. We did not enter into any deal with him. As for Mohammed Ishaq Patel’s alleged links with Dawood or his sister Haseena is concerned, we were dealing with the authorised PoA holder of the landlady,” he said.
Malik went on to add, “Let me make it clear that we did not do any business with persons linked to the underworld, as falsely alleged by Fadnavis. All transactions, financials and documents are on record in public domain. In fact, if Fadnavis had asked me, I would have provided him with more details which his aides have failed to.”