New Delhi, November 15, Rajesh Dalal, who was wanted by Delhi police for criminal offences like kidnapping, attempt to murder and assault on police officers, has made a shocking revelation after his arrest in Maharashtra's Sangli district. High drama was witnessed at the police headquarters here today when a criminal arrested in connection with cases of kidnapping and robbery claimed he wanted to kill Bollywood actress Mallika Sherawat. 

Rajesh Dalal, who was carrying a reward of Rs 25,000 on his head and evading the Delhi Police dragnet for the past two months, was finally arrested in Maharashtra’s Sangli district by the inter-state cell of the Crime Branch.

The police have been on his trail for cases like attempt to murder, kidnapping, criminal intimidation, assault on police officials and escape from custody, which had prompted him to flee the Capital.

Senior police officials claimed his arrest from the remote village of Jaisinhpur, around 40 km from Kolhapur, was a major success, but they were in for a surprise when they paraded him before the media at the police headquarters.

On seeing camerapersons, he started shouting he had gone to Maharashtra to kill actress Mallika Sherawat who, he said, had hurt the sensibilities of Haryana and the Jat community to which she belonged.

The police, however, rubbished his claims, saying that he was doing this for cheap publicity. “Now that he is caught, he is trying to divert attention from his cases,” Deputy Commissioner of Police (Special Cell) Neeraj Thakur said.

A resident of Nangloi in West Delhi, the commerce graduate began his criminal life by kidnapping his estranged wife in 1999. 

He is accused in several kidnapping cases, robbery of a petrol pump manager and attack on policemen.

Posing as a computer graphics engineer, he had been living in Sangli in Maharashtra, the police said.
Mallika will next be seen in a song appearance in Mani Ratnam’s movie Guru . She is also acting in comedy films like Fauj Mein Mauj and Welcome .