Gangster nabbed due to television serial

Basharat Peer in New Delhi

India's Most Wanted, the crime buster television serial on Zee Television Network, has added another feather in its cap.

Nazim Salmani, a gangster from Uttarkhand, who murdered BJP leader from Uttar Pradesh, Bhram Dutt Diwedi, has been arrested by the Uttaranchal Police Special Operations Group in Chandigarh.

The serial had featured the 29-year-old gangster from Haridwar in its episode telecast on January 9, 2001.

Nazim Salmani committed his first crime in 1988 when he shot Abdul Aziz, resident of Haridwar. In 1992, he killed a resident of Jawalapur. In 1994, he killed Bhram Dutt Diwedi. His victim in 1995 was Ram Prakash of Haridwar, whom he and his gang kidnapped and then killed.

Salmani was also wanted in numerous cases of robbery, kidnapping, attempt to murder and plunder.

After the telecast, Salmani, who had gone into hiding in Chandigarh with his wife Zeenat, was spotted by several viewers of the programme.

Acting on a tip-off, a team of Uttranchal police Special Operations Group led by Superintendent of Police Umesh Kumar, reached there and working in tandem with the local police, zeroed in on Nazim Salmani.

Sources said that the team did not arrest Nazim Salmani initially since they wanted to trail him and reach his other associates also. On February 15, when Salmani emerged from his house in Panchkula, Chandigarh, the mufti clad SOG team started following him. He sensed danger as he recognised some of the policemen from his hometown Haridwar.

Sources added that apprehending an encounter, Salmani entered a jewellery shop in Manu Majra market and telephoned his wife. Then he complained to the local police that some people were following him.

When the local police arrived, he surrendered himself and his country made .315 bore pistol.

The crime buster teleserial is anchored, produced and directed by Manoj Raghuvanshi for Zee TV, which holds the copyrights for it.

Raghuvanshi told rediff.com, "Out of the 36 episodes telecast, 22 criminals have been nabbed by the police. I am happy that our success rate is 61 per cent."

The concept of the show is borrowed from the famous American Television serial America's Most Wanted.

It was introduced by Suhaib Ilyasi and became a top rated show. Suhaib broke ties with Zee TV later and started it with a different name Fugitive Most Wanted on Doordarshan Television Network.

But his show went off air after he was accused by his in-laws of killing his wife Anju Ilyasi. Suhaib is now out on bail.