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Music director Nadeem accused of killing Gulshan Kumar
Music director Nadeem Saifi got music magnate Gulshan Kumar murdered, the Bombay police alleged on Monday.
Police Commissioner Ronald H Mendonca alleged at a press conference on Monday that Gulshan Kumar was shot dead by three goons hired by Nadeem who apparently felt Kumar was trying to end his career.
Nadeem, along with Shravan, had shot to fame after the success of the musical, Aashiqui, a film produced by Gulshan Kumar. The duo had recently scored the music for Subhash Ghai's Pardes, besides winning several awards for last year's blockbuster Raja Hindustani.
Assistant Commissioner of Police (Detection) L R Rao, who is a part of the team investigating the case, said, "Sixty-five per cent of the market for music audio rights are owned by Gulshan Kumar's Super Cassettes company and he refused films in which Nadeem-Shravan had composed the music. Therefore, Nadeem eliminated him."
According to the police, Nadeem hatched the conspiracy in Dubai in May with Anees Ibrahim Kaskar, the brother of fugitive gangster Dawood Ibrahim Kaskar and Dawood's associates Abu Salem and Kayyum.
On August 16, the police team arrested Javed Abdul Wahid Khan and Rafique Ahmed Ansari, affiliated to the Abu Salem gang, in connection with the murder.
During interrogation, Khan and Ansari said they and two others, Mohammad Ali Hassan Shaikh and Rafique Mohamad Issac Phalke, had discussed the plan in Dubai along with Anees Kaskar, Abu Salem and Kayyum.
Rao denied earlier reports that Kumar was killed by extortionists because he did not pay up. He said though the police had admitted that Gulshan Kumar had received threats, nowhere had they said that these came from extortionists.
Nadeem did not attend the Filmfare awards in Hyderabad on August 27 -- his wife is being treated in London for problems related to her pregnancy.
Asked why the police disclosed Nadeem's involvement when he was not in Bombay and, therefore, difficult to arrest, Rao said, "He is not a professional criminal who will escape like other criminals. His entire set-up is in Bombay. There is no way he can escape."
Crime branch sources said Nadeem has been out of Bombay since Gulshan Kumar died. During the interrogation of the arrested gangsters, the police reportedly learnt that Nadeem had organised a "secret" music function in June for Dawood Ibrahim Kaskar in Dubai. Many wellknown Bollywood personalities, the police claim, were present.
Gulshan Kumar apparently preferred newcomers and avoided the duo after they became well-known, Rao said.
Oddly enough, in February, Nadeem had brought out an album,Hi! Ajnabi, in association with Super Cassettes. This, despite not working with Gulshan Kumar for four years.
Asked during the album's release about his differences with Gulshan Kumar, Nadeem had said, 'There were no differences at all... We just got busy and drifted apart... But now everybody is back together, just like old times.'
The police also interrogated Shravan, but could not find anything. "So far we feel he is not involved in the killing," Rao said.
"We expect Nadeem (to return) this week...," Rao said, adding that the police hopes to capture the actual killers in a week. But the police officer did not reveal the killer's names, claiming that making the names public would hinder the investigation.
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