Mumbai:

Bollywood actor Salman Khan has been issued a death threat, allegedly by the Lawrence Bishnoi gang, demanding Rs 5 crore to “end the enmity”. A WhatsApp message, sent to Mumbai Traffic Police, warned that if the money is not paid, then the actor’s fate would be worse than that of former Maharashtra minister Baba Siddique, who was murdered recently, allegedly by Bishnoi gang members.

“Don’t take this lightly. If Salman Khan wants to stay alive and end the enmity with Lawrence Bishnoi, he must pay Rs 5 crore. If the money is not given, his condition will be worse than Baba Siddiqui’s,” the threat message read. 

According to sources, the Mumbai Police is working to track the origins of the message and have increased security around Mr Khan’s Bandra residence. The actor has been on high alert following previous threats, and this recent development has added renewed concerns about his safety.

READ | Lawrence Bishnoi Has 700 Shooters On Call. How He Operates From Jail

Yesterday, the Navi Mumbai Police arrested a key member of the Lawrence Bishnoi gang. The accused, identified as Sukha alias Sukhbir Balbir Singh, was apprehended in Haryana’s Panipat and has been linked to an alleged plot to assassinate Mr Khan. Singh had reportedly given a contract to other gang members to carry out the attack on the actor.

According to police sources, Singh had been in direct contact with his handler, Dogar, a Pakistani-based figure, to coordinate the planned attack. The gang had allegedly intended to use high-powered firearms, including AK-47s, M16s, and AK-92s, smuggled from Pakistan to execute the plot. 

Singh’s arrest is the latest in a series of breakthroughs in a broader investigation into the Bishnoi gang’s conspiracy against Mr Khan. Earlier this year, the Navi Mumbai police registered an FIR against 18 individuals from the gang for plotting to kill the actor. The FIR followed a shocking incident in which members of the gang fired outside Mr Khan’s Bandra residence.

READ | “Wanted Canada To Extradite Bishnoi Gang Members”: India On Diplomatic Row

Among the accused named in the case are high-profile members of the Bishnoi gang, including Lawrence Bishnoi himself, his brother Anmol, Sampat Nehra, Goldie Brar, and Rohit Godhara. These individuals have long been linked to organised criminal activity across North India and have become notorious for their brazen threats and acts of violence.

The ongoing police investigation has uncovered disturbing details about the gang’s planning. Police sources revealed that the Bishnoi gang had deployed between 60 to 70 operatives to monitor Mr Khan’s movements. These individuals conducted reconnaissance at various locations, including Mr Khan’s Bandra residence, his Panvel farmhouse, and the actor’s shooting locations. The gang even attempted to recruit minors to act as sharpshooters.

This is not the first time Mr Khan has been the target of death threats linked to the Bishnoi gang. In 2022, a letter threatening the actor was discovered on a bench near his residence, and in March 2023, the actor received an email allegedly sent by members of the gang. In January 2024, two unidentified individuals attempted to trespass into Mr Khan’s Panvel farmhouse using fake identities, an incident that prompted the actor to increase security around his property.

Mr Khan’s feud with Lawrence Bishnoi dates back several years. The gangster, currently imprisoned, has reportedly harboured a grudge against the actor over his alleged involvement in the 1998 blackbuck poaching case. The Bishnoi community reveres the blackbuck, and the incident is the primary reason why the gang seeks revenge. 

Mumbai:

Bollywood actor Salman Khan has told police that he believed the Lawrence Bishnoi gang carried out the firing at his residence in Mumbai in April this year with the intention to kill him and his family members.

The actor’s statement is part of the charge sheet filed by Mumbai Police in a court here in connection with the incident.

He heard a firecracker-like sound while being asleep at his residence in Galaxy Apartments in the early hours of April 14, Mr Khan told police.

His police bodyguard told him around 4.55 am that two people on motorbike had fired at the first-floor balcony, he said.

There had been attempts to hurt him and his family earlier, Mr Khan said, adding that his bodyguard lodged a complaint regarding the firing at Bandra police station.

The actor learnt later that gangster Lawrence Bishnoi and his brother Anmol Bishnoi had confessed and taken responsibility of the attack in a Facebook post, the statement said.

Lawrence Bishnoi and his gang members had talked about killing Mr Khan and his relatives earlier too, the statement said, adding, “So, I believe that Lawrence Bishnoi, with the help of his gang members, carried out the firing incident when my family members were sleeping and (they were) planning to kill me and my family members.” He and his family had received several other threats in recent years, the actor told police.

In 2022, a threat letter was found on a bench opposite his building, while in March 2023, they received an email threat from the Lawrence Bishnoi gang, he said.

Two unidentified persons tried to trespass into his farmhouse near Panvel using fake identities in January 2024, the actor noted.

Police filed the 1,735-page charge sheet in the firing case before the special court for Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act cases earlier this month.

The court recently took cognizance of the charge sheet, saying that prima facie there was enough material to proceed against the six arrested accused.

Those arrested in the case were Vickykumar Gupta, Sagarkumar Pal, Sonukumar Bishnoi, Anujkumar Thapan (now dead), Mohd Rafiq Choudhary and Harpal Singh.

Thapan allegedly committed suicide in police custody after his arrest. The other five are now in judicial custody.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)