17 years after, a gangster’s on his way to India

Kumar Pillai is likely to be extradited to India from Singapore late Monday

After being on the run for around 17 years, underworld gangster Kumar Pillai is likely to be extradited to India from Singapore late Monday.

Crime branch officials have taken court’s special permission to handcuff Pillai after the flight lands in Mumbai (HT)

Pillai will be brought to Mumbai by a five-member team of crime branch by an Air India flight late in the night.

Crime branch officials have taken court’s special permission to handcuff Pillai after the flight lands in Mumbai.

The police said the need for permission to handcuff Pillai was to avoid hassles pertaining to the human rights. The police are also carrying the court’s permission letter.

The team, headed by a deputy police commissioner, had left for Singapore on Wednesday night with a set of original documents that were earlier submitted before the Singaporean committal (lower) court seeking his extradition to India.

After being brought to Mumbai, Pillai will be handed over to the unit VII of the crime branch, which is investigating the recent cases registered against him. While there is no lock up at unit VII office at Ghatkopar, it is likely that Pillai will be kept at the Mumbai police headquarters at Crawford Market, citing security reasons.

“His custody will be taken by the unit VII after Pillai is produced in a local court. Pillai was booked in 2013 in another extortion case in which he had allegedly demanded money from an MLA. He had spoken to the victim over the phone and threatened him to pay the extortion money to his aides,” said a police officer.

Pillai’s extradition was cleared by the court there on May 18, after the court ruled in India’s favour, giving Pillai 15 days to appeal before a higher court. The time ended on June 2 after Pillai did not file a fresh appeal.