Extradition of Abu Salem and Monica Bedi to India

The Extradition of Abu Salem and Monica Bedi to India was the culmination of a secret, high-stakes operation that brought two of Mumbai's most wanted fugitives back from Lisbon to face Indian justice. For the Central Bureau of Investigation, it was the biggest assignment of the careers of the officers involved, a mission conducted in such secrecy that even the Parliament, described as the leakiest ship in the country, was kept in the dark for fear of political pressure that might obstruct the plan. The operation ended with Abu Salem, once a man from the boondocks of Azamgarh in Uttar Pradesh who had risen to gangster status in the city that gave him his livelihood, finally back in Mumbai, and with Monica Bedi, the starlet who had fled the city over four years earlier, about to begin a new and extended ordeal behind bars.

The Flight from Lisbon

The extradition began on the tarmac of Lisbon airport, where a police convoy cut across the runway, its blaring sirens failing to raise even one eyebrow amidst the din. Gun-toting guards gave the convoy the impression of a mobile fortress. The cars screeched to a halt and officers of the Policia Judicia stepped out, escorting a thirty-six-year-old man dressed in a black T-shirt and track pants. He had a stooping gait and seemed to be smiling nervously. For deputy superintendent of police, Special Task Force, CBI Devendra Pardesi, the moment seemed unreal; the man being handed over just didn't fit the bill of one of Mumbai's most dreaded gangsters, someone who had masterminded some of the most gruesome murders in the annals of Mumbai crime history. The occupant of the second car stepped out just as in the movies, a policeman holding the door open as a woman's legs emerged, toes first and then the heels, as she climbed gracefully out of the car. Her fair skin appeared pale and almost translucent in the afternoon heat. Tall and slim, with very delicate features that were strained at the moment, she clutched a Bible like it was a lifesaver.

The CBI had decided against a civilian aircraft and opted for a cargo plane instead, a Russian-made Indian Air Force aircraft that was just a box with wings. Once inside its wide body, one found a massive open space with one line of metallic benches fitted on each side, ropes hanging from the ceiling, and a mini crane at the far end near the cargo hold. The plane had a urinal but no decent commode. Both Salem and Monica seemed visibly affected by the sight of the plane that would take them back home to a posse of policemen and hordes of journalists; the bleakness seemed to portend their future and the duo looked disturbed. Once inside, Pardesi handcuffed Salem to one bench to prevent any attempts the don might make to hurt himself, knowing that if anything happened to Salem en route, human rights activists would haul them over the coals. Salem pleaded, 'Saab, can I meet Monica for one last time?' A thick curtain separated the two. 'Don't you dare move from where you are,' Pardesi said, glaring at him.

The Journey Home

Monica heaved a sigh of relief as the plane climbed higher and higher. Soon she would be back in Mumbai, the city she had left hurriedly over four years ago, and she wondered whether the city and its people would embrace her again, whether her co-stars and friends would speak to her. She feared the worst. After four hours, the plane landed at Cairo International Airport, where Chhatwal and Pardesi disembarked to stretch their legs while the aircraft was being refuelled; Salem was not allowed to move. After a stopover of two hours, the plane took off for its final destination of Mumbai. The long journey finally made Salem open up; he chatted with Pardesi, the deafening roar of the engines notwithstanding, speaking of Monica and his family. On the other side of the curtain, Monica didn't say a word as she read passages from the Bible. At 7.30 a.m., the plane landed at the Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport in Mumbai. Chhatwal and Pardesi were relieved; they had managed to bring Salem and Monica back and successfully carry out the biggest assignment that the duo had been given in their respective careers.

At the airport, the officers were greeted by Intelligence Bureau agents who took Salem along with them for a brief grilling session. Meanwhile, Pardesi took Monica to a waiting room, where he would hand her over to the CBI sleuths from Hyderabad, who were expected any moment. Monica was going to be arrested for securing a fake passport from Kurnool in Andhra Pradesh in 2001, under a fictitious name and address. She had already been booked under sections 420, 471 and 468 of the Indian Penal Code, 13 (2) to be read with 13 (Id) of the Prevention of Corruption Act and 12 (IB) of the Passport Act. In the room she sat silently, even as Pardesi scanned her documents. She still held on to the Bible firmly. 'Are you Christian?' Pardesi asked her. She nodded. Pardesi observed her carefully, unable to stop wondering how a beautiful starlet had landed up with an uncouth and cold-blooded gangster like Salem.

The Final Separation

After a half-hour's grilling, the Intelligence Bureau handed Salem over to the CBI, the first of several sessions the IB would have with him. Once with the CBI, Salem kept on pleading with officials to allow him to meet Monica privately one last time. By then, women officials from the Hyderabad CBI had also arrived. Pardesi decided to grant Salem his final request but denied him a private tête-à-tête. And so, before Monica was taken to Hyderabad, Salem got his last opportunity to see her. Pardesi observed that while Salem tried to have a word with her, Monica showed no interest and didn't say much except for goodbye. Then, Salem knew that she was done with him for good.

Monica was flown to Hyderabad on an Indian Airlines flight. She spent her night at the CBI office in the Koti area of Hyderabad. The following day she was taken to court, where she was remanded to judicial custody for seeking a passport under a fictitious name from the Kurnool district of Andhra Pradesh. When she landed in India, Monica had assumed her ordeal was almost over; she did not realise that she would be taken into custody by the Indian authorities and that the judgment would lead to another extended stay behind bars for her. For the next ten months, she was lodged at the Chanchalguda Jail in Hyderabad, with her bail pleas repeatedly being rejected by the court. Initially, even her lawyer and relatives weren't allowed to meet her. In September 2006, Monica was sentenced to five years' rigorous imprisonment by the special court of the CBI in Hyderabad on the charges of cheating, criminal conspiracy and impersonation while securing a fake passport. Two months later, on 25 November, she was shifted to the Central Jail in Bhopal for allegedly securing another fake passport from there. All this while, Monica didn't protest.

Aftermath and Public Break

It was seventeen months after her extradition from Portugal before Monica finally broke her silence. She wrote a letter to the court from Central Jail stating that she was innocent. 'I was very young and inexperienced and a plain and simple girl by nature. I was without a guardian in Mumbai and desired to develop my future as an artiste. I was ignorant about many evils that were prevalent in Mumbai. I couldn't imagine the pros and cons, I never thought that for such innocence and ignorance, I would be subjected to so much suffering in India,' she wrote. Two months later, on 16 July 2007, the Bhopal court absolved her of all charges in the fake passport case. But Monica was only able to walk free when the special CBI court in Hyderabad granted her bail on 24 July 2007. After her release, Monica spoke at length to the media about her experience in Indian jails. 'For the first time, I came face to face with real poverty and injustice. There were many women languishing behind bars for crimes they had never committed, while there were others who openly boasted of their criminal exploits yet managed to be set free. But my jail inmates loved me. They would cook for me, do other chores for me. I, on the other hand, would teach them to dance and give them some beauty tips. The girls were so thrilled that someone they saw on the screen was amongst them,' Monica said.

Salem's deepest fears came true when the starlet openly claimed that she no longer pined for him. 'I loved him but all his actions were selfish. He duped me. There cannot be another chapter between Salem and me,' she said. It was clear that Monica wanted to forget her past and start afresh. Her only advantage was that Salem was still languishing in Arthur Road Jail. The extradition thus marked not only the end of a fugitive's flight but also the final, public dissolution of one of Mumbai's most notorious criminal romances, a separation that had been years in the making and that the secret flight from Lisbon had only postponed.