Dawood Ibrahim looks for a burial spot in Maharashtra's Mumbai, Khed

MUMBAI: Mumbai's most wanted gangster Dawood Ibrahim, who has tormented India for years from his foreign hideouts, has begun looking for a burial spot for himself in and around Mumbai.

Crime Branch, which has spent millions keeping track of his movements over the years, confirmed that the don has asked his men to look for a final resting place for him in Mumbai or Khed, his native town around 218 km from here.

Confirming Dawood's desire to be buried in Mumbai where he was born and cut teeth in gangland, Crime Branch chief Himanshu Roy said, "We are aware of Dawood's instructions to his men to find a place for his burial."

Dawood, 56, responsible for the first terror attack on Mumbai - the 1993 serial blasts that left over 250 dead - has had two heart attacks and his movements are now restricted by the doctors in Karachi, where he is currently holed up.

According to reports, Dawood advanced the date of his younger daughter's wedding a year ago after the second heart attack. His elder daughter is married to former Pakistan cricketer Javed Miandad's son. Dawood's son, the youngest of his three children, married the daughter of a UK-based businessman just a couple of months back.

Dawood is among the 50 terrorists India wants Pakistan to hand over. Apart from his hawala network in India, his involvement is also suspected in providing logistics to the 10 terrorists who attacked Mumbai in 2008.

Dawood left Mumbai in the late '80s. He first set up base in Dubai, where he would often be spotted on TV enjoying cricket matches. He moved to Karachi after the 1993 blasts in Mumbai, when smuggling of gold and electronic items became unprofitable with the opening up of the economy.

"We are aware that there are some gangsters who want to return to their native land but they are afraid of the consequences," said Roy.

Maulana Zaheer Abbas Rizvi, general secretary, Shia Personal Law Board, said the community didn't consider Dawood an Indian.

"He should be buried wherever he dies. But if the government permits his family to bring back the body, we will decide what to do with it," he added.