Mumbai :  Gangster Abu Salem’s lawyer will move an application in a sessions court in Mumbai to seek his repatriation to Portugal in the wake of the attack on him inside the Taloja Central Jail in Navi Mumbai yesterday.

The gangster, who is an accused in the 1993 Mumbai blasts case, was arrested in Lisbon in 2002 along with his girlfriend, actor Monica Bedi, for travelling with fake passports. He was extradited from Portugal in 2005 for his alleged role in the serial blasts which left 257 dead and 713 injured.

Salem sustained a minor injury on his hand when an inmate fired at him around 8:30 pm on Thursday. He was taken to the Navi Mumbai Municipal Corporation Hospital in Vashi yesterday and was brought back to Taloja Jail today.

He was allegedly attacked by, Devendra Jagtap, a sharpshooter who was arrested in connection with the murder case of an advocate named Shahid Azmi. According to police sources, Jagtap reportedly fired two rounds. While an investigation is underway to find out how the gun was sneaked into the jail premises, sources in the police say they believe it was brought in a couple of days ago and not yesterday.

Both Abu Salem and Devendra Jagtap are lodged in the “Anda cell” of the Taloja Jail.  Sources say Jagtap reportedly opened fire after an altercation between the two over the extortion business they allegedly run from inside the jail.

Another theory reportedly doing the rounds is that the attack on Salem was planned to seek his repatriation to Portugal citing safety concerns, say sources. This theory, sources add, proves how a sharpshooter like Jagtap missed his target despite firing from a close range.

This is the second attack on the gangster inside a jail after he was deported in 2005.

While getting Salem extradited, India had given an executive assurance to Portugal that it would not press any charge which would entail death penalty and would not keep him behind bars for more than 25 years, key requirements in extradition.