The name of Karim Lala, Mumbai's yesteryear don, resurfaced recently when Shiv Sena leader Sanjay Raut claimed that former prime minister Indira Gandhi used to come to meet him in Mumbai.
Abdul Karim Sher Khan, born in Afghanistan in 1911, was a Pathan whose family shifted from Kunar to Mumbai's (then Bombay) Bhendi Bazaar, a Muslim-majority region.
Beginning his career by joining an ethnic Pathan gang who were illegal recovery brokers, who aided Marwari and Gujarati businessmen and lenders, he worked his way up to become the leader of the group. Soon, Karim Sher Khan became Karim Lala (Lala is elder brother in Pasto).
His illegal business portfolio comprised of unlawful liquor trade, gambling, kidnapping, contract killings, forced evictions, and extortion rackets.
His association with the other two big heads of the trade, Mastan Mirza aka Haji Mastan and Varadarajan Mudaliar emerged and a battle of bloodshed and destruction began. The three eventually got together and split their work and designated locations.
Lala reigned over the smuggling scene from 1971-74 after which he handed over his empire to his nephew, Samad Khan. Samad Khan was, in turn, pulled down by the Dawood Ibrahim gang in 1984.
Lala was claimed to have had good relations with multiple Bollywood and political big shots, especially in the 1970s and 80s.
Lala led a very simple unsophisticated life, compared to that of his peers, even when he had the upper hand in the business, various media reports mentioned.
Karim Lala passed away on February 19, 2002, at the age of 90.
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