Mumbai:

The plan to assassinate former Maharashtra minister and NCP leader Baba Siddique was conceived just 10 days after the shooting incident outside Bollywood actor Salman Khan’s residence on April 14, Mumbai Police’s Crime Branch sources have said. 

Two men on motorbikes fired multiple rounds outside Mr Khan’s residence in Bandra in April, leading to the arrest of several individuals. Sources revealed that following the incident, the Lawrence Bishnoi gang sought to target individuals close to the actor. Baba Siddique, a close friend of Salman Khan, emerged as a prime target. 

Investigations have revealed the gang’s reliance on “dabba calling,” an illegal telephone exchange system, to coordinate the murder. “Dabba Calling” is a term likely derived from the use of a secondary phone (dabba) to issue threats. Anmol Bishnoi, Lawrence Bishnoi’s brother, allegedly used this system extensively to instruct key operatives, including Shiv Kumar Gautam, Zeeshan Akhtar, Shubham Lonkar, and Sujit Singh.

The gang had established its own telecommunication hub. This network ensured real-time coordination during the crime while shielding the conspirators from police tracking.

Baba Siddique, aged 66, was gunned down near his son and MLA Zeeshan Siddique’s Bandra office on October 12. According to Crime Branch sources, Shiv Kumar Gautam, believed to be the lead shooter, lingered at the crime scene for 20 minutes post-attack.

Gautam discarded a bag containing his pistol, shirt, and Aadhaar card before blending into the panicked crowd. Witnessing the chaos and police presence, he took further steps to avoid detection, including changing his clothes and returning to the scene to gauge the situation.

Later, Gautam reportedly boarded an autorickshaw and headed to Lilavati Hospital to confirm Mr Siddique’s death. At 10:47 pm, he left for Kurla railway station, discarding his mobile phone en route to eliminate potential evidence. Authorities are still working to recover the device.

Further probing revealed that Shubham Lonkar, another suspect, had undergone weapons training in the dense forests near Bilaspur in Chhattisgarh, in July. Crime Branch officials suspect that Lonkar’s training, involving an AK-47, was facilitated by Maoists, though this connection remains under investigation. 

New Delhi:

After veteran NCP leader and former Maharashtra minister Baba Siddique was shot dead near his son’s office in Mumbai’s Bandra last night, a political slugfest has erupted over the killing between the ruling BJP and Opposition parties. While the BJP-led Maharashtra government has requested not to “politicise” the incident, Opposition leaders, notably from the Congress, have slammed the ruling dispensation over what they describe as a “collapse of law and order.”

Mr Siddique, 66, a prominent political figure known for his three-time stint as an MLA from Bandra West, was gunned down by unknown attackers outside his son Zeeshan Siddique’s office in Bandra East last night. According to the police, Mr Siddique sustained multiple gunshot wounds, including one to the chest, and died of his injuries at Lilavati Hospital later that night.

READ | Baba Siddique Shooters Claim To Be From Lawrence Bishnoi Gang: Sources

Following the murder, Mumbai Police arrested two suspects who claimed to belong to the notorious Lawrence Bishnoi gang. Bishnoi, incarcerated at Gujarat’s Sabarmati jail, was also involved in the shooting incident outside the residence of Bollywood actor Salman Khan, who is known to have been a close friend of Mr Siddique.

Political Slugfest

“The tragic demise of Baba Siddique ji is shocking and saddening. My thoughts are with his family in this difficult time. This horrifying incident exposes the complete collapse of law and order in Maharashtra. The government must take responsibility, and justice must prevail,” wrote Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi.

Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge echoed similar sentiments, calling Mr Siddique’s murder “shocking beyond words.” In a statement released on X (formerly Twitter), Mr Kharge said, “The tragic demise of former Maharashtra Minister, Baba Siddique, is shocking beyond words. In this hour of grief, I offer my deepest condolences to his family, friends, and supporters. Justice must be ensured, and the present Maharashtra government must order a thorough and transparent investigation. The culprits must be brought to book at the earliest. Accountability is paramount.”

READ | Strongman To Bollywood Mediator, Baba Siddique Beyond Lavish Iftar Parties

“The news of the murder of senior Maharashtra leader Baba Siddiqui is extremely sad. I pray to God to give the deceased a high place in heaven and give patience and courage to the family. What name will you give to such criminal incidents that are continuously happening in Maharashtra under the NDA rule?” asked RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav.

BJP spokesperson Pradeep Bhandari said that the ruling Mahayuti Alliance – comprising the Shiv Sena (Eknath Shinde faction), BJP, and the Nationalist Congress Party or NCP (Ajit Pawar faction) – wasted no time in cracking down on the culprits.

“The Maharashtra government of Eknath Shinde, Devendra Fadnavis, and Ajit Pawar’s NDA government caught two accused within 24 hours. The search for the third accused is underway, and he will also be caught soon,” Mr Bhandari said. “Politics should not be done on this. Baba Siddique was a big leader. In Maharashtra, no one can escape the law. CM Eknath Shinde is personally monitoring the investigation.”

READ | Baba Siddique’s Shooters Lived In Rented House, Did Recce For Weeks: 5 Points

BJP MP Praveen Khandelwal appreciated the state’s quick response while taking a swipe at Rahul Gandhi.

“The unfortunate incident that happened with Baba Siddique can’t be condemned enough and we are all sad about this…but state government immediately sprung into action, some accused were arrested, nobody can show promptness more than this. When it comes to Rahul Gandhi and some other people, I am sad about the fact that they look for politics in such incidents as well. When Rahul Gandhi is asking questions about the law and order situation, he should also comment on the law and order situation of the states where his party is in power,” said Mr Khandelwal

Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar also urged the Opposition to not politicise the murder.

“We are very sad that our friend is lost. The opposition should not politicise this matter,” Mr Pawar said, adding that five teams have been formed and sent to other states to investigate the case. 

Law Enforcement’s Challenge

According to the police, out of the three shooters, two have been arrested – Gurmail Baljit Singh, 23, from Haryana and Dharamraj Kashyap, 19, from Uttar Pradesh – and one has been identified as Shiv Kumar, also from UP. A fourth person, believed to be the handler, is on the run.

The suspects had been monitoring Mr Siddique for months, conducting reconnaissance of his residence and office. The police revealed that the suspects had been paid Rs 50,000 each in advance for the hit and that arms had been delivered to them only days before the assassination.

Both arrested suspects are now in police custody, and the hunt for the others continues. Mumbai Police have also heightened the security around Salman Khan’s residence.