This Article is From Oct 28, 2010

In Arthur road jail, Abu Salem has a 'taxi'

In Arthur road jail, Abu Salem has a 'taxi'
Mumbai: Did you know that underworld gangster Abu Salem has a taxi in jail?

Yes, according to the latest jargon from the Arthur Road jail, most high-profile gangsters, including Salem, have taxis which deliver whatever they need from the outside world.

'Taxi' is a code name given by undertrials to the jail employees who double up as delivery boys for the gangsters in the prison.

So, when they say Abu Salem ki taxi aa rahi hai, it means a jail official is coming to pick up something for him.

While the carriers are code-named as Taxi in Arthur Road jail, they are called parinda (bird) in Thane jail, kabootar (pigeon) in Taloja jail, and cartoon in Nashik jail.

According to a source, the policemen are bribed heavily for working as delivery boys for the undertrials.

"Only high-profile and rich undertrials and underworld gangsters can afford to have such taxis because they are very costly," a source said.

The source also said everything is available inside the jail if you can pay the premium.

"You can even make a local or international phone call from inside the prison. The rate for a local call is Rs 100 per minute and Rs 500 for an international call. You can make the call using the cellphone of a jail staff and pay the charges," the source said.

About how the undertrials manage to take so much money inside the jail when only Rs 1,500 per under trail is allowed, the source said even the money is taken inside by bribing the officials.

"The charges are 30% of the amount that needs to be smuggled inside the jail. For instance, if Rs 10,000 needs to be taken inside the jail, the staff has to be bribed Rs 3,000," the source added.

The source further revealed that some of the undertrials have themselves started to sell things inside the jail.

"With the help of their taxis they manage to smuggle in goods, such as cigarettes, toothpaste and liquor, which are in demand inside the jail and they sell them to other prisoners at a very high rate," the source said.

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