A former journalist claimed that he was threatened by Chhota Shakeel after he revealed that he would be bidding for a property of underworld don Dawood Ibrahim in Mumbai.
S Balakrishnan said on Saturday that he will be bidding for one of the seven listed properties of Dawood on behalf of his NGO Desh Seva Samiti that works for child welfare and woman empowerment.
The auction of the property situated at Pakmodia Street in South Mumbai will be held at Hotel Diplomat in Colaba on 9 December.
"I received an SMS from Shakeel. He said 'You are taking part in the auction. What happened to you? I hope you are okay'," PTI quoted Balakrishnan as saying. "This is their style of saying: keep off."
He added that the NGO will run a spoken English and computer training institute that will be named after freedom fighter Ashfaqullah Khan.
"He (Ashfaqullah) should be the role model for kids, not Dawood," he said. "A man sitting in Pakistan cannot dictate terms to the country."
Balakrishnan added that the reserve price of the property is Rs 1.18 crore and that the NGO is trying to raise the balance.
However, the former journalist said that he has not informed the police about the SMS threat.
The Competent Authority had seized seven properties of Dawood Ibrahim in cases under Narcotics and Smugglers and Foreign Exchange Manipulators (Forfeiture of Properties) Act 1976.
