Kolkata youth poses as a member of Dawood's gang, threatens Maharashtra's top political leaders

The recent threat calls to Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray, NCP supremo Sharad Pawar, state Home Minister Anil Deshmukh and Shiv Sena chief spokesperson Sanjay Raut had set the police and security forces to a tizzy.

However, now it has emerged that all the calls were made by a Kolkata-based youth Palash Bose, a gym instructor, who threatened the leaders posing as a member of the Dawood Ibrahim syndicate.

He has been arrested by the Anti-Terrorism Squad of Maharashtra in an operation with the help of Kolkata police and is being brought to Mumbai on a transit remand.

The operation was carried out by a team of officers and men led by police inspector Daya Nayak of ATS Juhu Unit and comprised assistant police inspectors Dashrath Vitkar and Sachin Patil, and police constable Dhiraj Rane.

“On the basis of information, the team conducted a discreet operation with the help of Kolkata Police and arrested the accused. He was found in possession of two mobile handsets, one Indian SIM, and three international SIM cards. During the preliminary interrogation, the accused has admitted to have committed the said offence,” ATS officials said.

The accused is a science graduate and was working in Dubai for more than 15 years. “His linkages are being enquired into. He has also admitted to have issued similar threats using the overseas mobile SIM crads to the landline telephone numbers of Thackeray, Pawar, Deshmukh and Raut,” the officials said.

After these calls, Deshmukh has asked the Maharashtra police to filter out the source of these calls.