The 66-year-old NCP leader was attacked by three men at Kher Nagar in Mumbai's Bandra area just outside his MLA son Zeeshan Siddique's office
The pistol used to shoot former Maharashtra Minister Baba Siddique was sent to the accused through a prepaid courier service, sources revealed on Sunday. They said that the attack, initially planned for Ganeshotsav, was postponed despite previous attempts on Siddique’s life.
The 66-year-old NCP leader was attacked by three men at Kher Nagar in Mumbai’s Bandra area just outside his MLA son Zeeshan Siddique’s office and shot at on Saturday night. The former Maharashtra minister was taken to a hospital where he was declared dead. The shooters reportedly opened six rounds of fire from a 9.9 mm pistol, which was recovered by police.
‘Contract killing’
According to information obtained from Mumbai police sources, the accused had been living in a rented room in Kurla since September 2, paying a monthly rent of Rs 14,000. Each of them received Rs 50,000 for a contract killing. Sources also revealed that the three accused met while incarcerated in a jail in Punjab.
Mumbai police are collaborating with law enforcement agencies in Uttar Pradesh, Delhi, and Haryana to advance their investigation into the case. Six bullet shells were recovered from the crime scene, confirming that three bullets struck Baba Siddique, while one bullet hit a bystander standing nearby.
Murder investigation
The NCP leader, who pulled a big switcheroo in February this year by ending his four-decade-long ties with the Congress and joined the Ajit Pawar-led party, had received a death threat just two weeks ago and was under ‘Y’ category security.
Mumbai Police has said that the crime branch has launched a probe into the case from different angles, including a possible contract killing, business rivalry or threat over a slum rehabilitation project. So far, two of the accused have been arrested — Gurmail Baljit Singh (23), a resident of Haryana, and Dharmaraj Rajesh Kashyap (19), a native of Uttar Pradesh.
A case has been registered at Nirmal Nagar Police Station under Crime Registration No. 589/2024, Sections 103(1), 109, 125, and 3(5) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), along with Sections 3, 25, 5, and 27 of the Arms Act, and Section 37 and section 137 of the Maharashtra Police Act.
Delhi Police Special Cell
Some teams have also been sent out of Maharashtra to nab the third accused who is still at large, police said. A team from the Special Cell of the Delhi Police is set to be dispatched to Mumbai to assist in the investigation of the murder of Siddique, the PTI reported, citing sources. “A team comprising four to five members from the Special Cell will go to Mumbai to investigate and assist the Mumbai Police. The team will look into the gangster angle,” sources said.
Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar on Sunday met with the son of Baba Siddique and vowed to catch the mastermind behind the fatal attack on the ruling party leader. Pawar mentioned that the Maharashtra government has issued directives to form five investigation teams which will be sent to other states to carry out a detailed probe into the Baba Siddique murder case.
“Yesterday night a very sad incident happened. We are unable to believe that this incident has happened. Two people have been arrested and a police investigation is going on. Five teams have been sent to other states. We are personally looking into it and we will figure out who is the mastermind behind this,” Pawar said.
Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on Sunday said police have found some leads in connection with the killing of NCP leader and former state minister Baba Siddique. Different angles behind the killing were being probed, but police will talk about it later, Fadnavis, who holds charge of the state home department, told reporters in Gondia district.
(With agency inputs)
