Unofficial confirmation was followed by official word from the CBI that one of India’s most wanted gangsters had indeed been arrested in the Indonesian resort island of Bali on a tip-off from Australian Federal Police, ending a 28-year-old global manhunt — Rajan is expected to be deported to India soon. Read: Who is Chhota Rajan Top intelligence sources told The Indian Express that Rajan had been hiding in Australia for over a year, and got in touch with Indian authorities four-five months ago. They added that there were “some discussions” going on between the Indian security establishment and the fugitive before Rajan “gave himself up” to Indonesia police while holding an Indian passport. Rajan’s arrest has sparked a buzz in security circles because of long-running rumours about his connections to India’s intelligence services, who hoped to use him to target the other most-wanted gangster Dawood Ibrahim. A leaked US diplomatic cable of 2005 directly linked former Intelligence Bureau chief and current National Security Advisor Ajit Kumar Doval to Vicky Malhotra, “the right hand man” of Rajan. -
A spokesperson for Australian Federal Police was quoted by agencies as having said that Interpol in Canberra had alerted Indonesian authorities “who apprehended Nikhalje at the request of Indian authorities”.
