The passport of gangster Chhota Rajan, arrested on Sunday in Bali
Chhota Rajan's arrest in Indonesia's Bali on Sunday was the result of a planned operation that began three months ago when the most-wanted gangster applied for visa extension in Australia.
When Rajan, 55, boarded a Garuda Indonesia flight from Sydney, say sources, he knew he would not walk out of the Bali airport a free man.
It was the Australian police that put him on that flight and then informed Bali about a passenger accused of several murders and wanted by Interpol, using an Indian passport and the alias "Mohan Kumar".
Indian and Australian authorities had decided back in September that Rajan should be arrested in a third country, Indonesia.
The same month, India sent a security officer to Indonesia to tie up loose ends.
Sources say Australia had been tracking the crime boss since he applied for an extension of his visa in August. "When processing his application, the Australians got a match of his fingerprint. His photos also matched the details on the Interpol red corner notice," a senior security officer told NDTV.
Rajan is wanted in India for at least 17 murders and cases of arms smuggling, drug trafficking and extortion.
After establishing his identity, Australia informed India in September and also restricted Rajan's movements.
Why Australia didn't want to arrest Ranjan isn't clear. But sources indicated that the country wanted to a keep a distance from the case.
Rajan, wearing an orange prison shirt, black shorts and cuffs, responded to NDTV's question today on whether he was afraid of returning to India because of threats from his mentor turned rival Dawood Ibrahim. "I am not afraid of anybody," he said.
During his interrogation, Rajan has said he wanted to go to Zimbabwe.
Rajan, born Rajendra Sadashiv Nikalje, had claimed he was on a holiday in Bali, but the police find it suspicious, given the Interpol notice and threats from Dawood.