The National Investigation Agency (NIA) has intensified its crackdown on the Pakistan-based D-Company, led by fugitive gangster Dawood Ibrahim, by attaching two properties owned by his associate Mohammad Yunus alias Manjro in Gujarat’s Bharuch. The action, authorized under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) by the NIA Special Court in Ahmedabad, is linked to the 2015 murder of BJP workers Shirish Bengali and Pragnesh Mistry, the agency confirmed on Friday.
The attached properties comprise Manjro’s residential house at Ward No. 3, City Survey No. 3614, Bharuch City (143.96 sq. mt.), and another property at City Survey No. 3615 (29.59 sq. mt.). Manjro, arrested for his role in orchestrating the November 2015 killings, was part of a criminal conspiracy hatched by Dawood’s syndicate to target right-wing leaders and fuel communal tensions, according to NIA findings.
The 2016 NIA chargesheet revealed that Dawood’s aide Javed Chikna, operating from Pakistan, coordinated the murders via a WhatsApp message to South Africa-based Zahidmiya alias Jao, with funding of Rs 5 lakh routed through Dubai’s hawala network. The NIA described the killings as part of D-Company’s broader agenda of narco-terrorism, arms smuggling, and extortion, often in collaboration with groups like Lashkar-e-Taiba.
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“These attachments are a critical step toward dismantling the terror ecosystem of D-Company operating from Pakistan,” the NIA stated. The agency has ramped up efforts against Dawood’s network since 2022, previously seizing assets like a Mira Road property linked to Arif Bhaijaan and targeting operatives involved in terror funding. Dawood, a UN-designated global terrorist behind the 1993 Mumbai blasts, remains at large, reportedly in Karachi.
The NIA’s latest action signals India’s unwavering commitment to disrupting D-Company’s financial networks and bringing its operatives to justice. Further seizures and investigations are anticipated as the agency continues to unravel the syndicate’s operations.
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