This intensified push comes amid claims that the Dawood network continues to function as an important asset for Pakistan’s Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI), with agencies now targeting the very foundations on which the syndicate’s empire has been built for decades.
Dawood's empire under siege: Here's how India is crippling its financial lifelines
For years, the Dawood Ibrahim underworld network has survived not merely through fear and violence, but through a vast financial network powered by narcotics trafficking, fake currency operations and organised crime. Now, that economic backbone is facing sustained pressure. Indian security agencies have launched a series of coordinated operations aimed at cutting off the revenue streams that investigators believe have long sustained the syndicate and fuelled activities directed against India’s security interests.
Officials say the campaign has moved beyond isolated crackdowns and evolved into a multi-agency effort focused on dismantling the network’s financial architecture, tracking operatives and choking the channels that keep the organisation functioning. According to investigators, the objective is clear: weaken the syndicate’s ability to generate money, disrupt its operational machinery and steadily erode its influence.
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This intensified push comes amid claims that the Dawood network continues to function as an important asset for Pakistan’s Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI), with agencies now targeting the very foundations on which the syndicate’s empire has been built for decades.
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India’s national security establishment has directed multiple agencies to maintain continuous pressure on Dawood with back-to-back operations targeting different components of the syndicate.
Police forces, the Enforcement Directorate (ED), the National Investigation Agency (NIA) and the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) are working in coordination to identify, disrupt and dismantle the network’s activities.
“The objective is to systematically choke the network’s activities and ensure that its operational presence on Indian soil is brought to an end,” an official said.
Officials said the narcotics network remains a key area of focus for investigators. According to them, the drug trade serves as a major revenue source for the syndicate, with proceeds allegedly being used to support activities directed against India’s security interests.
Reportedly, the Dawood syndicate generates between Rs 15,000 crore and Rs 25,000 crore annually through its criminal enterprises. According to investigators, around 40 per cent of these earnings are allegedly shared in return for protection and facilitation, with a significant portion of the funds ultimately being used to support anti-India terror activities.
An Intelligence Bureau official said efforts are increasingly concentrated on dismantling the narcotics infrastructure linked to the network. “The current focus is mainly on the drug empire. Once this is knocked down, the syndicate would begin to crumble,” the official said.
Agencies have gradually tightened their grip through a series of coordinated investigations and enforcement actions.
Among the developments cited by investigators is the extradition of Salim Dola, described as a close associate of Dawood who allegedly handled a significant portion of the syndicate’s narcotics operations.
Information obtained during questioning is said to have helped agencies trace drug trafficking routes and identify networks operating in different parts of the country.
Investigators believe these leads have assisted in expanding ongoing operations against individuals linked to the trade.
Security agencies are also examining the alleged connection between organised crime networks and terror-related activities.
Officials said attention is being paid to individuals associated with the syndicate, including operatives and sharpshooters who were traditionally linked to extortion and criminal activities.
According to investigators, some of these individuals are now suspected of being assigned tasks connected to terror plots.
Officials claimed that recent investigations uncovered links suggesting that associates of the network were allegedly receiving instructions from Karachi to carry out attacks in major Indian cities, including Mumbai and Delhi.
The arrest of eight individuals linked to the syndicate has further intensified those investigations.
The NIA is simultaneously pursuing investigations into counterfeit currency operations allegedly linked to the syndicate.
Officials said the fake currency network remains another significant source of funds and is under active scrutiny in multiple cases.
Investigators allege that proceeds generated through counterfeit currency circulation are also diverted towards activities that threaten national security.
According to officials, the syndicate has built a widespread network of operatives involved in distributing fake currency across different regions.
The overall strategy is aimed at weakening revenue channels, disrupting criminal networks and reducing the organisation’s ability to function.
Maintaining pressure through coordinated action could significantly affect the syndicate’s capacity to operate and restrict the resources available to those allegedly using its networks for activities directed against India.
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