Author: N. Ganesh
Publication: The Indian Express
Date: June 22, 2004
URL: http://www.indianexpress.com/full_story.php?content_id=49508
Javed Sheikh, one of the four alleged
Lashkar-e-Toiba operatives gunned down by the Ahmedabad police on June
15, lived in Mumbra for six years in the same neighbourhood as Ishrat Jahan
Sheikh, the girl killed in the encounter. He also knew Ishrat's father
Mohammad Shamin Sheikh and the family.
Police claimed that Javed, an electrician,
figured in their records as early as 1992 when he was booked for carrying
a lethal weapon. They also claimed that he often changed apartments after
defaulting on payment of rent.
''In his six years of stay, he would
aid landlords to evict reluctant tenants,'' said Deputy Commissioner of
Police (Crime) Amar Jadhav.
Hanif Pitalwala, who constructed
one of the buildings in the locality, Masood Apartment, where Javed was
a tenant, confirmed that the latter had rented Flat no 206 from its owner
in late 1997.
''Javed was asked to vacate the
flat in four months when he failed to pay the rent and deposit,'' said
Pitalwala.
Javed arrived in Mumbra in 1992
and was initially supported by his one-time mentor Ashfaq Sheikh, who had
some real estate interests. It was Ashfaq who helped him settle down in
the area called Rashid Compound in Dausa.
And it was during his stay there
that he came in contact with Mohammad Shamin Sheikh, Ishrat's father. Masood
Apartment, where he lived, was a few blocks from Hashmat Park, Ishrat's
home. Javed, being an electrician, met Ishrat's father due to his involvement
in construction activity.
Javed left for Pune after his marriage
to Sajida. But he renewed his ties with the family through Rashid Ansari,
a common friend who lived in Zeenath Apartment, also in Rashid Compound.
Ansari is now being held by the
Thane crime branch for questioning. As per Ansari's statement to the police,
Ishrat and her mother Shamima had also paid a visit to Javed at Pune.
Of the five cases in which Javed
was booked, three come under the category of criminal trespass for forcibly
evicting people from their rented homes. All three cases of criminal trespass
were recorded in 1997. In the same year, Javed was booked for leading an
attack on a person from a rival group in Kausa.
