Justice prevails! SC orders seizure of properties belonged to fugitive don Dawood Ibrahim

New Delhi, April 21: The Supreme Court (SC) on Friday rejected a plea by a mother Ameena Bi Kaskar and sister Haseena Parker of fugitive underworld don Dawood Ibrahim challenging the attachment of their properties in Mumbai by the government. Notably, the Delhi High Court earlier ordered the Centre to seize all the properties belonged to underworld don Dawood Ibrahim.

 

A bench of justices R K Agrawal and A M Sapre rejected the plea filed by Dawood’s mother Amina Bi and sister Hasina Parker that challenged the attachment order of their residential properties in Mumbai. However, Dawood’s mother Amina Bi and sister Hasina Parker are both dead now.

The petitioners had pleaded that they were not duly served forfeiture notices and so the subsequent proceedings to attach their properties at Nagpada in south Mumbai were illegal and they should be given a fresh opportunity to challenge the forfeiture notices.

Dawood’s mother and sister had approached the Supreme court challenging the order of the Delhi High Court, which had turned down their plea against the order for seizure of their properties in Mumbai under the Smugglers And Foreign Exchange Manipulators Forfeiture Of Property) Act (SAFEMA).

A total of seven residential properties are in their names which has a value of crores of rupees. Of seven, two are in the mother’s name and five are in the sister’s name.

BACKGROUND:

In November last year, three south Mumbai properties belonging to the fugitive don were auctioned for Rs 11.58 crore. The properties were put on auction by the ministry of finance, under the Smugglers and Foreign Exchange Manipulators (Forfeiture of Property) Act. The three properties were the Hotel Raunaq Afroz, also known as Delhi Zaika, Shabnam Guest House and six rooms in Damarwala building. Dawood has also been linked to a series of properties across Britain.

Dawood, wanted in India as the mastermind of the 1993 bomb blasts in Mumbai and accused of crimes such as match-fixing and extortion also owns a vast property portfolio across the Midlands and south-east in the UK as well as in India, the United Arab Emirates, Spain, Morocco, Turkey, Cyprus and Australia.