It’s been a week since Arnab Goswami an editor-in-chief of the Republic media house, one of the top journalists of India was picked up by police on November 4th, 2020, after which the court put him in Judicial custody (JC), and was kept in a quarantine center in Alibaug.

Cops who picked up Arnab:

Former Encounter Specialist, Assistant Police Inspector (API) Sachin Vaze from Crime Branch, and the team. Vaze is a well-known encounter specialist with a count of eliminating 63 criminals in encounters, on record! Vaze was suspended for over 16 years and was reinstated earlier this year. Vaze’s suspension was a result of allegations of custodial death of Khwaja Yunus an accused in Ghatkopar, Mumbai 2002 bomb blast arrested under the “Prevention of Terrorism Act” (POTA). After Vaze’s suspension in 2008, he joined Shiv Sena for an extended period of time and was closely associated with Sena’s top brass. Vaze previously gained his name and fame in Thane police, he had also served in the Naxalite belt of Gadchiroli Maharashtra; a notorious Naxal belt near Nagpur.

Sachin Vaze is said to be mentored by Pradeep Sharma, one of the most feared and controversial encounter specialists aka sharpshooter of Mumbai Police; he is allegedly involved in over 150 encounters (113 on record). Sharma was suspended due to allegations of his involvement in the fake encounter of Lakhan Bhaiya, a Chota Rajan’s aide. Vaze and Sharma are now both reinstated in Mumbai police. Like Sachin Vaze, Pradeep Sharma had also joined Shiv Sena and contested unsuccessfully against Kshitij Hitendra Thakur, son of the local bahubali politician Hitendra Bhai Thakur, in Thakur’s stronghold of Nalasopara township in Vasai tehsil. Previously Intelligence bureau had also recorded Sharma’s conversations with Dawood gang members.

Taloja Jail- A landing zone for fierce gangsters and terrorist:

As per Republic media, on November 8th Sunday, the Mumbai Police barged inside the quarantine center in Alibaug and haphazardly moved Arnab to a Taloja Jail located in Navi Mumbai.

After court giving JC Arnab could either be kept in a location directed by the court under surveillance (like he was in a quarantine center) or put in jail. It is reported that Arnab told journalists from Republic “My life is under threat. My life is under threat. Not being allowed to speak to my lawyers. They assaulted me this morning. Woke me up at 6 am, said I can’t speak to my lawyers. Please tell people of India my life is under threat.”

Are his is concerns valid? Let’s see.

If allegations are to be believed that goal is to harass and torture Arnab. There were predominantly four major options of Jails in the jurisdiction of Mumbai and Thane the prime control of D-Company. Options were Arthur road Jail, Taloja central jail, Thane central jail, and Adharwadi jail. Apparently, Arthur road is the only major jail in the Mumbai city limit and is a heavily contested jail for control mainly between D-Company and Chota Rajan gang. Thane central jail and Adarwadi jail has a comparatively lesser hold of these gangs as the turf control is divided between many groups including many local prison gangs.

On the other hand, Taloja jail is said to be a sole stronghold of D-company. It is a hub for terror accused and most of D-Company’s dreaded gangsters. As per a reliable source, it is believed “many who goes against the company lands up in jails like Taloja” for example Abu Salem, a Mumbai serial blast accused and a former aide of Dawood Ibrahim. Who later disassociated himself from the D-company to form his own gang and eloped to Portugal. After his extradition from Portugal to India apparently, he ended up in Taloja Jail where he was attacked by D-Company member Mustafa Dossa, a 1993 serial blast convict and known henchmen of Dawood. Abu Salem was also attacked by other gangs like former Chota Rajan accomplice Bharat Nepali gang where he survived gunshot inside the jail. 

The Taloja Jail houses several terrorists and well-known gang members like Abdul Qayyum, a 1993 blast accused, who was also a suspect in the Gulshan Kumar murder case was also incarcerated in Taloja jail. Similarly, many contract killers involved in high profile killing like Farid Tanasha, Makta King Suresh, Advocate Shahid Azmi and many more are or have been in Taloja Jail.

RV Subramani a former bureaucrat who held the office of the Under-Secretary, Internal Security Department, Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA), while speaking to Goa Chronicle has issued this warning as “Arnab Goswami has touched the wrong nerve of Mumbai’s underworld organized criminal syndicate run by the global drug kingpin and terrorist Dawood Ibrahim, many politicians, the drugs and Bollywood nexus.” he also added, “Dawood Ibrahim administrating legal, financial and mental attack on Republic TV, Arnab Goswami may face physical attack.”

This is just the tip of an iceberg of how the Mumbai underworld, drug syndicate, and political network operate if you cross their lines. The message is loud and clear, you may be anyone including a top Journalist, you are not out of their reach. Now since Arnab has moved to Supreme Court, It’s time to wait and watch does Indian judiciary still have some real space and justice for the fourth pillar of the democracy.

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