Babloo Srivastava (Top) and Fazal-ur-Rahman

Lucknow, Aug. 13: The arrest of Fazal-ur-Rahman, a Babloo Srivastava kingpin, last week near Gorakhpur close to the Indo-Nepal border has put sleuths on the trail of his girlfriend Archana Sharma.

Archana, whom intelligence agencies have dubbed the most wanted woman for staging several high-profile abductions as a Srivastava lynchpin, is on the run since escaping from a 1998 swoop. A red-corner notice is also in force for her in 44 countries.

Fazal, a one-time thug from Darbhanga in Bihar, met Srivastava in Tihar Jail in 1994. Once free, he emerged as a kidnapping kingpin for the dreaded don. While he went about the job, Srivastava introduced him to his fiancee, and partner-in-crime, Archana. Fazal then fell for his boss’ girl.

Ironically, the incarcerated Srivastava has chronicled his life in Adhura Khwab (Unfulfilled Dream), an autobiography in which he writes about love and betrayal. It is not known if Fazal will follow his mentor to the publishing house, but the pain of a romance cut short by destiny, will haunt him.

It was only after Fazal escaped to Nepal that the police and intelligence agencies heard about Archana, who originally hails from Ujjain in MP. Fazal lived with her in Kathmandu between 1994 and 1997.

In the early 90s’, Dubai ganglord Irfan Goga introduced Archana, alias Manisha, to Srivastava in Lucknow. “From small crimes, Archana graduated to the big league of the D-company when she joined Srivastava. She even moved to Dubai and opened a garment store there. Later, she lived in Calcutta, Mumbai and Lucknow. Her passion for a Bollywood career even landed her a role in Gangster (not the recent Mahesh Bhatt one),” says Rajesh Pandey, additional SP of UP Police’s special task force.

In 1997, Archana was arrested by Delhi Police under the Arms Act but was later released on bail.

She is reported to have plotted the kidnappings of Mumbai builders R.D. Vyas and Vishwanath Mittal and H. D. Punwani, the owner of Lytton Hotel in Calcutta.

It was during Punwani’s abduction in December 1998 that the taskforce came within an eyelash of its target. UP cops team led by ASP Satyendra Vir Singh shadowed the kidnappers in Calcutta before killing four of them in a shootout. Mangal, a confidant of Srivastava, was critically injured.

Archana, living in Calcutta’s Jodhpur Park as Nalini Chaudhury, got wind of the raid hours before the skirmish. She even gave her landlord the slip, telling him that her father had died. There has been no word on Archana’s whereabouts since then.

After the arrest of Fazal — now back in Tihar Jail— sleuths have stepped up the hunt for Archana. Sources in Lucknow said “she has been in touch with Srivastava”, apparently to seek shelter.

Srivastava, however, denied links with Fazal and Archana. The don does not want to have his name dragged in their cases.

“I don’t have any contact with Fazal since we parted from Tihar Jail,” says Srivastava.