NEW DELHI: Underworld don and Dawood Ibrahim ’s key lieutenant Chhota Shakeel has finally divulged why D Company ’s rivalry with their one-time associate Chhota Rajan has turned so bloody and continues to simmer even after 25 years.

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Shakeel contacted TOI on Saturday to say Rajan had gunned down six of the accused in the 1993 Mumbai serial blasts cases between 1998-2001, something which, he says, he has not been able to forget till date and will cost Rajan his life very soon.

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Days after Rajan was arrested in Bali and brought to India on Friday, Shakeel opened up on the genesis of his two-decade old rivalry with Rajan and termed the six slain men, who were killed while they were out on bail, as innocent. Among those murdered, was Yakub Yeda’s brother Majid Khan—both considered to be very close to the don. Rajan, one by one, used his shooters to eliminate them in Dongri and other areas, Shakeel said, adding that he had been helped by men from a law enforcement agency as well.

Shakeel says due to these killings, Rajan has already been sentenced to death in D Company’s court and will be executed soon. “Hamaare court mein maut ki saza ho chuki hai usko. Wo hum denge. Jald mauqa milega…inshallah,” said Shakeel.

Shakeel also cited these killings as the reason why CBI had “refused” to hand over Rajan to Mumbai police. “Rishtedaar lagta hai unka Rajan kya ... jo nahi diya Mumbai Police ko? Jabki saare case wahan hai? Jin cheh begunaah logon ko usne maara woh case bhi hain Mumbai Police ke pass hi... Desh bhakti ka naam to isi kaam se toh leta hai woh…,” said Shakeel sounding clearly troubled with recent developments about Rajan.

The first to be killed in this series was Salim Kurla who was bumped off on April 21, 1998 in Andheri. He had been accused of sending men to Pakistan. After him, Jindran, a builder, was killed on June 29, 1998. The third target was a builder Majid Khan who was eliminated on March 1, 1999.

At the time of murder, Khan was with his aide and co-accused Shakeel Ahmed. Majid Khan and his brother Yakub Khan alias Yakub Yeda were accused of having kept the RDX in a factory. Yakub Yeda died of a heart attack in Karachi in the first week of August this year.

Thereafter, Rajan eliminated Hanif Kadawala another accused who was also a film producer. This was followed by the murder of Akbar Sama Khan who was accused of loading RDX into suspect cars and scooters at Tiger Memon’s garages in Mahim area.

These killings had first portrayed Rajan — who at that time was swinging between Bangkok, Zimbabwe, Luxembourg and Malaysia — as D Company’s arch rival and also led to a bid on his life in 2000 in Bangkok.