Chhatrapati Sambhaji Nagar: Abdul Rauf alias Dawood Merchant (60), a hired gun of underworld don Abu Salem, who was convicted of shooting dead T-Series founder Gulshan Kumar in 1997, died of a suspected heart attack at the Harsool Central Jail in Maharashtra’s Chhatrapati Sambhaji Nagar on Thursday.
Rauf was serving a life sentence for the murder. A post mortem on his body was conducted before it was handed over to his family.
Kumar was shot dead on the morning of August 12, 1997, outside the Jeeteshwar Mahadev Temple in Andheri, Mumbai. As per his daily routine, he had gone to the temple for prayers. As he got out of his car, the attackers opened fire on him at close range.
According to the prosecution, Rauf fired 16 bullets at Kumar. He died
on the spot.
Investigation revealed that Kumar’s murder was not just a business dispute, but a part of an underworld plan to create fear and exert control over Bollywood. During the 1990s, Salem – a member of Dawood Ibrahim’s gang – was engaged in extortion from Bollywood.
Kumar was allegedly asked to pay protection money, which he refused, following which he was killed to set an example for others.
Rauf was arrested and sentenced to life imprisonment in 2002. In 2003, he was sent to the Harsool Jail in Chhatrapati Sambhaji Nagar. The sentence was upheld by the Bombay High Court.
Rauf was released on parole in 2009. As soon as he got out of jail, he fled. He was on the run for eight years, evading the police. He was arrested again in 2016-17 and sent back to Harsool Jail, as per News18.
His health had been deteriorating for the past few days. On December 30, he suffered a mild heart attack, after which he was admitted to the Government Valley Hospital. On January 4, after seeing improvement in his health, he was shifted back to the jail. However, on Thursday morning, he is suspected to have suffered a severe heart attack and died.