Mumbai: Mustafa Ahmed Umar Dossa alias Mustafa Majnu, who died of cardiac arrest at JJ Hospital on Wednesday while awaiting sentencing for his role in the 1993 blasts, rose from working in his grandfather’s oil mill — located opposite the same hospital — to become one of the country’s most hated figures.
Dossa was born into an upper middle class family in Bhavnagar, Gujarat on October 11, 1954 to Ahmed Umar Dossa and Amina. His father worked with his uncles at the oil mill run by his grandfather, Umar, but differences between the siblings led to Ahmed moving out in 1965. In 1974, Ahmed bought a shop in Manish Market for ₹75,000 and made his sons Mustafa, Mohammad and Haroon partners.
Soon after, Mohammad sold off his share in the shop, and brought another in the same market complex in 1976. Over time, Mohammad came in contact with Haji Mastan, who operated in the same area, and entered his world of gold and silver smuggling. The lucrativeness of the illegal trade appealed, and Mohammad soon brought Mustafa on board. The Dossa brothers’ association with Haji Mastan made them realise the importance of landing points and landing agents along the country’s coast. The duo, who ran their own gang, were not part of Dawood Ibrahim’s syndicate.
Blasts role
The brothers’ role in the 1993 bomb blasts that killed 257 people came to light only when blasts-accused Saleem Mira Moiuddin Sheikh, disclosed Mustafa’s involvement in his confessional statement. On June 3, 1996, a non-bailable warrant was issued against him. It was then known that he had attended several meetings in Dubai to plan the blasts.
Mustafa was declared a proclaimed offender on December 31, 1997 and a red corner notice was issued against him. In his statement to the court, he said he came to know about his being accused in the blasts only after CBI officers met him in Dubai. He also claimed he had volunteered to come to India to face investigation. The CBI claimed Mustafa had become a Pakistani citizen under the assumed named of Mustafa Umar Merchant and had also obtained a National Residential Permit for the UAE on the basis of his Pakistani passport.
