UP's most wanted criminal Guddu Muslim a 'bambaaz' or 'dhokebaaz'

Prayagraj (UP), April 21 (IANS) Guddu Muslim, the man who bombed Umesh Pal to death on February 24 in Prayagraj, is now the most wanted criminal in the state.

Interestingly, while the police are frantically looking for the 50-year-old bomber, supporters of slain Atiq Ahmad are also eyeing him with suspicion and claim that he was the one who gave leads to the police about Asad, leading to his encounter.

Guddu Muslim's name came into focus after the murder of Umesh Pal in Prayagraj.

A look into his background reveals that he is one of the dangerous criminals in the state.

Those who know him, claim that Guddu started criminal activities at a young age.

Born in Allahabad (now Prayagraj), he got involved in extortion and robbery in his school days itself.

Soon, he came in contact with the "established players of underworld", including Atiq and then specialised in handling explosives and making bombs which earned him the sobriquet of 'Bambaaz'.

When his family members got fed up with him, they sent him to Lucknow to a relative's house. They thought the change in the city would change his heart too. On the contrary, he joined the "big league" of criminals and started working with two eastern UP dons -- Abhay Singh and Dhananjay Singh.

A former DIG, who served with STF, said Guddu Muslim's name first came up in the murder of Fedrick J. Gomes, the games teacher of La Martiniere school in 1997.

"Guddu was arrested with Dhananjay Singh and Raja Bhargava," he said, adding that "the three were acquitted for lack of evidence in the court. Guddu, at first, had confessed to crime but took a U-turn in the court."

In 1996, Guddu killed contractor Santosh Singh. After poisoning Singh, Guddu took his rifle and car too. Singh's body was found in a car in Rae Bareli. The murder turned Abhay Singh and Dhananjay Singh into bitter enemies -- and their animosity continues to this day.

Guddu, who had betrayed his friend Santosh Singh, came to be known as Guddu 'Dhokebaaz' from Guddu 'Bambaaz'.

Guddu started climbing the ladders of the underworld, securing tenders and contracts for his bosses. To this end, he did not shy away from challenging Ajit Singh, a notorious gangster from Unnao. Muslim used to kidnap officials to secure the tenders.

The tender business brought him closer to one of most dreaded gangsters -- Shri Prakash Shukla. Later, Shukla opened new avenues for him and introduced Guddu to gangster Parvez Tada and Suraj Bhan in Bihar.

Tada had an elaborate network. He supplied arms and ammunition to criminals -- including AK series rifles and semi-automatic weapons. He used to smuggle Chinese-made pistols coming in from Pakistan with Omar Khayyam.

For some time, Guddu moved to Bihar as UP STF was snapping at his heels.

He worked for both Suraj Bhan and Uday Bhan.

In 2001, the Gorakhpur police unit arrested him outside Beur jail in Patna, said an official.

"However, Atiq Ahmed came to his rescue and got him out. Subsequently, Guddu began working for Atiq and slowly became his confidante," the official said, while adding that Guddu was charge sheeted by CB-CID in MLA Raju Pal murder case 2005.

While Atiq was arrested, Guddu Muslim went underground. "Hiding successfully, he solidified the real estate business and managed the gang affairs," a source said.

Earlier in February, Guddu surfaced again after years to kill Umesh Pal. The CCTV footage showed him hurling bombs at Pal and his security gunners. He went after them and kept lobbing the bombs with utmost precision.

Guddu remains at large with two remaining shooters -- Sabir and Armaan.

He was last seen in the house of Atiq's brother-in-law Dr Akhlaq in Meerut. The STF are conducting raids to search for him in Nasik where he went from Jhansi. It has been learnt that Guddu was hiding in the house of one Satish Pandey in Jhansi.

Supporters of Atiq believe that it was Guddu who gave the details about Asad's presence in Jhansi which led to his encounter on April 13.

"Guddu Dhokebaaz is capable of spilling the beans to save himself," said an Atiq supporter.

His latest location is believed to be in Odisha, according to STF officials.