Controversial beedi businessman Muhammed Nisham was arrested on charge of attempt to murder a security guard in Shoba Group’s residential township in Thrissur on Thursday.

According to police, the security guard was hit by Nisham’s ‘Hummer’ car for delay in opening the gate of the township in the wee hours of Thursday. The security guard Chandrabose has been put on ventilator support after receiving serious injuries.

Nisham is managing director of Tirunelveli-based King Beedi Co. Apart from being a prominent tobacco supplier, he has hotel and jewellery businesses in the Middle East. His cars include Bentley, Rolls-Royce, Aston Martin, Road Ranger, Ferrari and Jaguar.

Police said Nisham first tortured the security guard when there was a delay in opening the gate. To escape from Nisham, the guard rushed behind the fountain near the gate. Then, Nisham turned his massive beast Hummer on the hapless man and pressed him against the wall using the vehicle. He continued to attack the security guard using iron rod. Later, he was rescued by other security guards.

Police sources said Nisham is facing several criminal cases in Thrissur. “We are planning to slap on him various provisions under Kerala Anti-Social Activities Prevention Act (KAAPA),’’ police said. Normally, the KAAPA is slapped on anti-social elements and members of supari gangs.

Nisham had ran into several controversies in the past also. In April 2013, he had allowed his son, then nine-year-old, to drive Ferrari in their residential complex in Thrissur, leading to a police case.

Nisham’s wife, Amal Nisha, shot a video of their son Ishan, 9, at the wheel of their Ferrari, his four-year-old brother by his side. These visuals of the elder boy driving through the residential area went up on YouTube, sparking outrage among viewers.

The police were initially hesitant to act but eventually booked Nisham on two charges – under the Juvenile Justice Act for cruelty to a child, and under the Motor Vehicle Act for allowing a person without a licence to drive. Arrested under the latter charge, Nisham was later released on bail.

Later in the same year, during a police check, he allegedly locked a woman sub-inspector inside his car. He was then driving his brand-new Rolls Royce when police stopped him for a routine check. Nisham was found to be under the influence of alcohol. Police allege Nisham tried to manhandle a woman sub-inspector in their team. He allegedly told them that no police station in Kerala is fit for his Rolls-Royce to park at. To prevent him from driving away, the woman sub-inspector got into the car for the keys. Police say Nisham, who was outside, locked the doors with remote control, trapping the sub-inspector inside. More policemen arrived and had a heated argument with Nisham who, they say, “released” the sub-inspector only after that.

Nisham had then denied the allegation that he had locked the woman in. “The woman SI told her colleagues to take me into custody, saying that here is the person who allowed his minor son to drive a Ferrari,” he then told The Indian Express. “I did not lock her inside; she could have come out if she wished. Everything has been recorded on camera. And what I told the police was that the Rolls-Royce was new, and it was not proper to take it to the police station the first day,’’ Nisham then said.

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