New Delhi: Zoya Khan is her actual name, but she is just well known as the ‘Lady Don’ of Delhi.
Wife of notorious gangster Hashim Baba, Zoya had been on the radar of law-enforcement agencies for a long time. But after managing to give authorities the slip for several years, the law finally caught up with the Lady Don of Delhi.
She was arrested on Wednesday for possessing 270 grams of heroin, worth approximately Rs 1 crore in the international market.
After her husband Hashim — who has dozens of cases against him ranging from murder and extortion to arms smuggling — was sent to prison, the 33-year-old Zoya managed his criminal empire by quite efficiently, ensuring that she could not be linked to any illegal activity with direct evidence.
Police did suspect her role in criminal activities, but could not build a solid case against her – until they got wind of the heroin.
The Special Cell and Crime Branch of Delhi Police, acting on intelligence inputs, caught Zoya red-handed with a large quantity of heroin in the Welcome area of northeast Delhi. The heroin, allegedly sourced from Muzaffarnagar, was to be distributed to different agents.
Role in Gym owner’s murder?
Police suspect that Zoya provided shelter to shooters involved in the murder of gym owner Nadir Shah, who was shot dead in September 2024 in south Delhi’s posh GK-1 area.
She was interrogated last month in connection with the shooting.
Zoya’s mother, jailed in 2024 for alleged involvement in a sex-trafficking ring, is currently out on bail. Her father, too, was linked to drug supply networks.
Hashim’s gang amassed massive extortion funds, which was mostly given to Zoya.
Lawrence Bishnoi links
Hashim allegedly confessed to his role in the killing of Nadir and implicated notorious gangster Lawrence Bishnoi who has a massive network despite being lodged in prison.
Bishnoi’s gang was involved in the murder of musician Sidhu Moose Wala and the firing incident outside Bollywood superstar Salman Khan’s Mumbai residence.
Police said Hashim and Bishnoi met in jail in 2021, and got close. They got separated, being lodged in separate jails thereafter, but maintained contact through illicit phone lines and video calls to coordinate their respective gang’s activities from behind bars.
