16 July,2015 07:14 AM IST | | Sailee Dhayalkar
The underworld don's brother has received a notice stating his current residential property in Mumbai would be sealed, as it was allegedly bought with the gangster’s money
Underworld don Dawood Ibrahim's brother Iqbal Kaskar has filed a petition in the High Court seeking intervention in the seizure of his current residential property under the Smuggling and Foreign Exchange Manipulators Act, 1976. Kaskar has also asked for a chance to be heard in the matter.
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Iqbal Kaskar, Dawood Ibrahim's brother, has stated that he and his late mother bought the Dambarwala building in 1985 for R60,000 and his brother had nothing to do with it. File pic
On June 9, 2015, Kaskar received a notice from officials of the Central government, working under the ambit of the SAFEMA, stating that his current apartment building, Dambarwala building on Pakmodia Street, had been forfeited. The department, in the notice, has alleged that gangster Dawood Ibrahim had bought the building with his illegitimate income.
Kaskar has been asked to hand over possession of the property within 30 days of the service of the order. The Dambarwala building occupies an area of 8,595 square feet and is said to be worth Rs 60-70 crore. However, Kaskar, in his writ petition, has claimed that he and his late mother own the residential premises and it has nothing to do with his brother.
Kaskar has stated in the petition that he has been residing in the same building since 1985 and no notice had been sent to him by the government authorities until the sudden June 9 notice stating that the property had been forfeited.
The petition also states that the Income Tax (I-T) department knew that Kaskar and his late mother, Aminabi Hasan Ibrahim Kaskar, had bought the building for Rs 60,000 and till date the I-T department had not disputed the purchase of the property.
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So this order stands both illegal and unconditional, states the petition. Kaskar's advocate, Shyam Keswani, said, "The grounds on which the notice has been sent are that Dawood Ibrahim had been asked to present himself before the authorities under the Conservation of Foreign Exchange and Prevention of Smuggling Activities Act (COFEPOSA).
But till date he has not presented himself and is absconding. Because Kaskar is Dawood's brother, he was served with the notice. I mentioned the case before the division bench today. The next hearing for the case is on August 2."
The don's brother, while asking for an opportunity to be heard in the matter, has also stated in his petition that he has led an "impeccable life" and had never been indicted by any court or competent authority.
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He has also mentioned that he was once prosecuted under the Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime (MCOCA) Act, but was later acquitted by the MCOCA court. After the 1992-93 riots, the Mumbai police have identified 11 benami properties of underworld don Dawood Ibrahim with a total area of approximately 43,000 square feet in south Mumbai.
Dawood also reportedly owns a hotel, flats on Juhu Tara Road in Santacruz (West), properties in Worli, Andheri (East), and Mahim, among others.
