कभी बॉलीवुड एक्ट्रेस मोनिका बेदी के साथ अपने इश्क को लेकर चर्चा में रहा डॉन अबू सलेम (Abu Salem), जो खुद को अंडरवर्ल्ड का बड़ा खिलाड़ी समझता था, फिलहाल 1993 के मुंबई बम धमाकों के मामले में उम्रकैद की सजा काट रहा है. अबू सलेम के जुर्म की दुनिया में कदम रखने की कहानी बड़ी दिलचस्प है. उत्तर प्रदेश के आजमगढ़ से मुंबई पहुंचे सलेम ने शहर में पैर जमाने के लिए पहले टैक्सी चलाई और फिर बाद में स्मगलिंग और वसूली का धंधा करने लगा. दाऊद इब्राहिम के गैंग से जुड़ने के बाद वह जुर्म की दुनिया में बहुत आगे निकल गया. हम आपको बताते हैं ‘एक ड्राइवर से डॉन बनने वाले अबू सलेम की पूरी कहानी 

यूपी से मुंबई वाया दिल्ली

उत्तर प्रदेश के आजमगढ़ के सरायमीर इलाके में जन्मे अबु सलेम ने परिवार की आर्थिक तंगी को देखते हुए 12वीं पास करने के बाद दिल्‍ली में ड्राइवर की नौकरी की. फिर वह मुंबई पहुंचा और वहां भी उसने टैक्सी चलाई. इसके अलावा ब्रेड की डिलीवरी की और कपड़े की दुकान में भी हाथ आजमाया. फिर वह रियल एस्टेट ब्रोकर के तौर पर काम करने लगा. साल 1987 में अबू सलेम, अंडरवर्ल्‍ड डॉन दाऊद इब्राहिम से किसी तरह मिला और फिर धीरे धीरे उसका राइट हैंड बन गया. इसके बाद तो उसकी जिंदगी ऐसी पलटी कि उसे मुंबई का डॉन कहा जाने लगा.

दाऊद के इशारे पर बॉलीवुड में जमाई धाक

दाऊद इब्राहिम के इशारे पर अबु सलेम ने कई बॉलीवुड सितारों और बड़े कारोबारियों से जबरन वसूली का धंधा शुरू कर दिया. वह बॉलीवुड के फिल्म प्रोड्यूसर्स को पैसा वसूली के लिए धमकाया करता था. कहते हैं बॉलीवुड में उसकी दहशत इतनी थी कि डर के मारे फिल्‍म कलाकार उसकी पार्टियों में भी नजर आने लगे. तयशुदा वक्त से पहले ही उसके पास वसूली की रकम पहुंच जाती थी. गुलशन कुमार, सुभाष घई, राजीव राय और राकेश रोशन जैसे फिल्म निर्माताओं को भी उसने धमकी दिलवाई थी. साल 1997 में गुलशन कुमार की हत्या भी सलेम के गुर्गों ने की थी. इसके अलावा उसने राजीव राय और राकेश रोशन की हत्या की कोशिश भी की थी, लेकिन प्लान फेल हो गया.

Bio
Real Name	Abu Salem Abdul Qayoom Ansari
Nicknames	Aqil Ahmed Azmi, Captain, Abu Samaan
Profession	Gangster, Terrorist
Physical Stats & More
Height (approx.)	in centimeters- 168 cm in meters- 1.68 m in Feet Inches- 5’ 6”
Weight (approx.)	in Kilograms- 76 kg in Pounds- 168 lbs
Eye Colour	Black
Hair Colour	Black
Personal Life
Date of Birth	According to Mumbai Police: 1962 According to CBI: 1969
Birth Place	Sarai Mir village of Azamgarh district, Uttar Pradesh, India
Age (as in 2017)	According to Mumbai Police: 55 Years According to CBI: 48 Years
Nationality	Indian
Hometown	Azamgarh district, Uttar Pradesh, India
School	A Primary School in Azamgarh, Uttar Pradesh
College	Did Not Attend
Educational Qualification	12th Standard
Family	Father– Name Not Known (Lawyer) Mother– Name Not Known Brothers– Abu Hatim Aka Chunchun miyan (elder brother), Abu Jaish, Abu Lais Sister– Not Known
Religion	Islam
Controversies	• In 1988, an F.I.R. was registered against him at Andheri police station for assaulting his colleague over a financial issue. • He was involved in numerous illegal activities of D-Company. • He is believed to have murdered music baron Gulshan Kumar in 1997. • His men shot Ajit Diwani, personal secretary to film actress Manisha Koirala in January 2001. • He is also accused of trying to kill some famous Bollywood figures including Aamir Khan. • He is considered one of the accused in the 1993 Mumbai Serial Bomb Blasts. • On 16 February 2015, he was convicted in Pradeep Jain murder case. • On 7 September 2017, TADA Court awarded him life imprisonment in the 1993 Mumbai Blast case.
Biggest Rivals	Chhota Shakeel, Dawood Ibrahim
Girls, Affairs and More
Marital Status	Married
Affairs/Girlfriends	Samira Jumani Monica Bedi (Actress)
Wife/Spouse	Samira Jumani (m. 1991) Sayed Kausar Bahar (m.2014)
Children	Sons– 2 (from Samira Jumani) Daughter– Not Known
Money Factor
Net Worth (approx.)	55 billion INRs ($0.67 billion)

Some Lesser Known Facts About Abu Salem

• Does Abu Salem smoke:? Not Known

• Does Abu Salem drink alcohol:? Not Known

• He was born in a lower-middle-class family in a small village called Sarai Mir in Azamgarh district, Uttar Pradesh.

• He was the 3rd among 4 brothers.

• His father was a lawyer who was killed in a road accident.

• He started a small mechanic shop in his hometown Azamgarh to support his family.

• Abu Salem attended a Primary School in his village, and after passing the 12th standard, he left the village and moved to Delhi, where he started working as a taxi driver.

• In 1985, he moved to Mumbai, where he worked as a bread delivery boy.

• In 1986, he started working at a garment shop in Andheri West.

• In 1987, he became a real estate broker operating from Arasa Market in Andheri West.

• In 1988, he appeared in a Police Station for the first time after assaulting a colleague over a financial issue.

• In 1989, he came in contact with Dawood Ibrahim and started working as a driver for the D-Company. He also started delivering weapons, illegal cash and goods to different gang members in Bombay (now Mumbai). Doing so, he earned the nickname “Abu Samaan.”

• In 1991, he got married to Samira Jumani (a 17-year minor girl). However, he divorced her later.

• In 1992, he supplied weapons to the famous Bollywood actor, Sanjay Dutt.

• Abu Salem played an active role in the 1993 Mumbai Serial Bomb Blasts in which over 250 people were killed and more than 700 were injured.

• In 1993, he left India and moved to Dubai and started a business establishment there called “Kings of Car Trading.”

• After getting the support of Dawood’s brother Anees Ibrahim, Abu Salem rose to prominence within the D-Company.

• Because of his soft-spoken ability, he was given the responsibility to manage the film financing and Bollywood deals for Dawood.

• On 12 August 1997, he is believed to have murdered Gulshan Kumar (music baron) without Dawood’s consent. He fled Dubai, fearing Dawood’s wrath.

• In 1998, after being sidelined, he parted ways with Dawood.

• It is believed that Dawood’s favour for Chhota Shakeel was the reason behind Salem’s split with Dawood.

• In the year 2000, he planned to kidnap Milton’s owner for a ransom of 30 million INRs.

• In January 2001, Abu Salem’s men shot Manisha Koirala‘s Personal Secretary, Ajit Diwani.

• In October 2001, his men tried to target Ashutosh Gowarikar, Aamir Khan, and Jhamu Sughand. However, 2 shooters were shot down in Bandra before they could target the film personalities.

• He also tried to kill Rakesh Roshan, Rajiv Rai, and Manmohan Shetty.

• On 20 September 2002, Abu Salem was arrested along with actress Monica Bedi by the Interpol in Lisbon, Portugal.

• In February 2004, a Portugal Court cleared Salem’s extradition to India.

• In November 2005, Abu Salem and Monica Bedi were handed over to India by the Portuguese authorities on the assurance by the Government of India that the death penalty would not be sentenced. 

•  In March 2006, eight charges were filed against him in by a special TADA Court in connection with the 1993 Mumbai Serial Bomb Blasts.

• On 27 June 2013, Salem was shot by Devendra Jagtap inside Taloja Central Jail in neighbouring Navi Mumbai. He sustained injuries in his hand.

• In August 2013, Punjabi singer Sukhwinder Singh Maan said that he would release a song composed by Abu Salem.

• On 16 February 2015, he was convicted in Pradeep Jain murder case.

• His ex-wife, Samira Jumani, currently lives in Duluth, Georgia, United States.

• On 7 September 2017, a special Terrorist and Disruptive Activities (Protection) Act (TADA) court awarded Abu Salem and Karimullah Osan Khan and death sentence to Taher Merchant and Firoz Khan.