NEW DELHI: Amid reports of infighting in the gang of underworld don and global terrorist Dawood Ibrahim in the United Arab Emirates, authorities there are understood to have detained Chhota Shakeel's brother and some other gang members to maintain peace.
As news about the detentions reached New Delhi, efforts were made to check the veracity of the reports and to explore the possible deportation or extradition if the detenues were wanted in India in any cases related to bomb blasts, extortion or other organised crimes, sources said.
The infighting, involving Dawood's trusted lieutenant Chhota Shakeel and his brother Anees, is believed to have turned dirty as both were fighting for the number two slot in the gang.
Anees, after his brief detention in the UAE last year, has allegedly been holed up in Pakistan following the intensification of a Central Bureau of Investigation campaign to nab him.
All activities in India of the crime syndicate, including murder and extortion, are being monitored by Shakeel on behalf of Dawood.
Those reportedly detained in the UAE are members of Chhota Shakeel's faction while none of the members of Anees' faction have been picked up. Besides Shakeel's brother, his brother-in-law Arif Bhaijan and Qayoom are also understood to have been detained.
The Dawood Ibrahim gang has kept its activities in the Gulf to the minimum after the don left the region in the wake of the strengthening of India's ties with the UAE, including the signing of an extradition treaty.
In the last three years, a few members of Dawood's gang have been deported to India. Among them are Dawood's brother Iqbal Kaskar, his aide Anil Parab and former key associate Ejaz Pathan.
