D's Man In Delhi

Police officers describe Sharma as 'D's man in Delhi'. "He has given shelter to Dawood's men, providing valuable information and working at the behest of the D-Company. He speaks to them almost daily," admits a senior police officer. According to information collected by the CBI, Intelligence Bureau and police, big businessmen including S. Balasubramaniyam of Reliance and Parasram Purla are among his supporters.

Sources in the government say Sharma once took a Delhi-based car exporter to Dubai to introduce him to Dawood. The exporter stayed in Dawood's mansion and a cook prepared special vegetarian food for him. "The most intriguing thing is that he operated openly. And nobody could harm him," says a senior police officer.

However, Sharma's game got over in a rather innocuous fashion. Hours before the CBI and Delhi Police sleuths swooped down on Delhi's "most powerful underworld man" on October 20, Sharma was busy making corrections in a press release. Surrounded by his darbaris, sundry supporters and armed musclemen, Sharma suddenly started shouting at one of his cronies who had inadvertently mentioned Subhash Chandra Bose's name in the press release: "Who the hell is Subhash Chandra Bose? Write my name. Don't mention Rajiv Gandhi's name also. Who is he? I am everything now." Little did he realise that very soon he was going to be reduced to nothing.

In his capacity as president of his newly-floated political outfit, the Bharatiya Congress Party, Sharma was preparing to call mediapersons to a press conference to announce his plans for the Delhi assembly elections. The man, who sold clothe-hangers on the pavements of Karol Bagh just 25 years ago, had made it big. It was clearly a rags-to-riches journey, albeit via the underworld.

But his nemesis was present in the midst of the crowd gathered at his Mayfair Garden house on October 20. H. Suresh Rao, the diminutive, young commercial director of Push-paka Aviation, Mumbai, was there to reclaim a helicopter that was hired by Sharma in 1996 for electioneering in Phulpur. Sharma, who was contesting as an Independent, lost the election but refused to return the chopper. Instead, he pressed his 150-odd goons to dismantle the chopper and carry it to Delhi in a truck. Since then, the chopper was parked in Sharma's Jai Mata Di farmhouse, another piece of grabbed property.

AFTER interrogating Sharma, the police and CBI have come to know that Irfan Goga, one-

time right hand man of Dawood, had done the needful. Goga, say sources, threatened Rao over the phone if he dared "talk about the helicopter". To the CBI, which had been planning a major offensive against Sha-rma for quite some time, Rao's complaint came as the perfect excuse.

In a meticulously planned operation, the CBI roped in the Delhi Police, Income Tax and excise department sleuths and arrested Sharma just when he had taken Rao and his friend Rakesh Gupta at gunpoint to his 13, Mahadev Road party office to make them sign some papers saying he was the owner of the chopper.

One night in custody, and Sharma had mellowed considerably. "He has become a mouse now," says a senior officer who interrogated him. Simultaneous raids in different places owned by Sharma yielded 15 imported and Indian cars, including a BMW and three Mercedes, gold ornaments

and utensils worth Rs 50 lakh, Rs 11 lakh in cash, shares worth Rs 1 crore and fixed deposit certificates worth Rs 23.5 lakh besides a cache of imported liquor. To complete the picture, tiger and leopard skins were also recovered—which alone might land Sharma in jail for six years. The Delhi Police recovered a .32 bore Smith and Wesson revolver and 14 rounds, and promptly registered a case against Sharma under the Arms Act as well.

The CBI seized some documents from Balasubramaniyam alias Balu's residence. Police sources say Balu, a liaison person of the Reliance Company, and Sharma floated a fake company called Reliance Developers and rented a property (S-41) at Panchsheel Park on lease. They refused to vacate the house and the owner, Panini Singh, has filed a civil suit against them. The Central agencies have a long list of properties grabbed by Sharma in Delhi and Mumbai. According to preliminary calculations, "he has grabbed property worth Rs 2,500 crore".

Born in a village in Phulpur tehsil near Allahabad, Sharma alias Ram Chandra Mishra alias Rajendra Sharma came to Delhi years ago. His first political contact was Chaudhary Charan Singh who, claims Sharma, gifted him a car. With the rise of Sanjay Gandhi, Sharma joined him and after his death became a member of Sanjay Vichar Manch. Which made it easier for him to get entry into the Congress. He left the party when he was denied a ticket in the 1996 polls.

He has admitted to the police that he came to know the powerful Mumbai don, Varadarajan Mudaliar, quite well. And it was after his death that Sharma came in contact with Dawood. According to the police, "Sharma went to the airport to receive Dawood when he came from a haj pilgrimage in 1986. Slowly, he became an integral part of the gang and became very close to Dawood's brothers Noora and Anis Ibrahim, also Abu Salem and Chota Shakeel." In fact, Income Tax authorities were the first to get to Sharma. I-T collector Vishwa Bandhu Gupta attached Romesh Sharma's property (C-28 and C-30, Mayfair Garden) and the helicopter on September 12. But surprisingly, he was transferred overnight. Sources say a powerful lobby of influential BJP men is supporting Sharma and that it was instrumental in getting Gupta transferred.

Just before launching his party, Sharma had declared that he would cut into Congress votes. In fact, he had dropped broad hints to several BJP leaders that by damaging the Congress, he could help them. As a result, sources say, a planned raid by the CBI was put off months ago. The Delhi Police, which is now taking credit for Sharma's arrest, never took action against him. When M.K. Subba, a Congress MP from Assam who is himself embroiled in several criminal cases, complained that his farmhouse at Chattarpur had been grabbed by Sharma, the police just registered a case. Sharma borrowed the farmhouse—like the helicopter—from Subba for 10 days and then forced him to sell it on paper to him. Sharma may be in custody, but police officials are quite amazed at his papers. He has got valid documents for each property accounted for in his name. "He cannot be put in jail for more than one month. Once he comes out he will make our lives miserable with his battery of lawyers," admits a top police officer.

As Sharma cools his heels, a sense of apprehension seems to have gripped people who took favours from him. Especially politicians—lest Sharma opens his mouth.