Mumbai, Oct 13 Two suspects arrested in the murder of NCP leader and former Maharashtra minister Baba Siddiqui have claimed that they are associated with the Lawrence Bishnoi gang.
However, the police have not yet confirmed this claim of the sources. Sources said that Mumbai Police is also investigating the possible involvement of the gang.
Baba Siddiqui (66), a prominent Muslim face of the Ajit Pawar faction of the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP), was shot dead near his son’s office in Bandra on Saturday night. Baba Siddiqui has been an MLA from Bandra West three times. He joined the NCP (NCP) from the Congress in February.
Baba Siddiqui had a close relationship with Bollywood actor Salman Khan. Salman Khan has repeatedly received threats from the Lawrence Bishnoi gang and its associates. On April 14, two shooters fired five rounds outside Salman Khan’s Galaxy Apartments in Bandra. Mumbai Police had said in the charge sheet that jailed gangster Lawrence Bishnoi had links with the shooters.
According to media reports, the firing was done by three people. Gurmel Baljit Singh (23) from Haryana and Dharmaraj Kashyap (19) from Uttar Pradesh have been arrested, while the third accused absconded.
Sources said that both the arrested suspects have claimed during interrogation that they were recceing the firing spot in Bandra East for about a month. The three accused had reached there in an auto rickshaw and waited for some time before firing.
Sources also said that the police are investigating the case from two angles. One is related to the Bishnoi gang and the other is related to the slum rehabilitation case. Further information and official confirmation are awaited.
Sources also said that Baba Siddiqui had never spoken of any kind of threat from the Bishnoi gang. Lawrence Bishnoi has dozens of criminal cases registered against him. He is lodged in a Gujarat jail.
Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde on Saturday said the murder case will be heard in a fast-track court and encounter specialist Daya Nayak will investigate the incident.
