Headlines
Dawood's surrender offer was conditional, so rejected: Pawar
Mumbai, July 4
NCP chief Sharad Pawar on
Saturday said lawyer Ram Jethmalani had contacted him over mafia don
Dawood Ibrahim's readiness to surrender in the 1990s when Pawar was
Maharashtra chief minister but the don had put forward conditions which
were not acceptable.
The conditions put forth for the surrender
by the don were not acceptable to the state government and hence it was
rejected, the Nationalist Congress Party president told media persons
here.
The incident took place when Pawar -- who then belonged to the Congress party -- was the chief minister.
"It
is true that Ram Jethmalani had given the proposal about Dawood's
willingness to surrender. But, there was the condition that he should
not be kept in jail. He wanted to remain in a house. This was not
acceptable to us, we said he must face the law," Pawar said.
The
NCP supremo was reacting to Jethmalani's charge that the state
government rejected an offer by Dawood to return to India and go under
house arrest as he feared for his life in a jail, as well as guarantees
that he would not be subjected to third-degree torture by the Indian
authorities.
Jethmalani claimed Dawood made the offer to
surrender when they met in London but the subsequent terms and
conditions were not acceptable either to Pawar or the then central
government.