Baba Siddique murder: ‘Shooters were in direct contact with Anmol Bishnoi’

an undated photo of Anmol Bishnoi. Pic/X (right) Bandra East MLA Zeeshan Siddique after meeting the Mumbai police chief on Tuesday. Pic/Faizan Khan

The Mumbai Crime Branch, investigating the murder of senior NCP (Ajit Pawar faction) leader Baba Siddique, has discovered that the shooters and one of the key conspirators were in direct contact with Anmol Bishnoi, the brother of Lawrence Bishnoi. Officials are now confident that the latter's gang is behind the murder of the former MLA, although the exact motive is still being determined. Preliminary investigations suggest that Siddique's close association with Salman Khan could be the motive.

Multiple teams from the crime branch, working across different states to track down key conspirators Shubham Lonkar and Jisan Akhtar, are investigating whether the Bishnoi gang is directly involved in the assassination of Siddique. Digital evidence has emerged suggesting that Anmol Bishnoi, suspected to be operating from Canada and the US, was in contact with one of the shooters and Lonkar. Officials have indicated that it's only a matter of time before they invoke the stringent sections of the Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act (MCOCA).

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The four accused at the Esplanade court. Pic/Sayyed Sameer Abedi

According to sources, investigators have uncovered several Snapchat accounts that the accused used to communicate with each other. Some of these are believed to be linked to Anmol Bishnoi. "We are verifying the details of these accounts, but we are almost certain that one of them is associated with Anmol Bishnoi and was used to influence the shooters to carry out the assassination, in which they succeeded," said a crime branch officer, speaking on condition of anonymity.

The crime branch has seized four mobile phones from the accused at the crime scene, and they have now received forensic reports, including mirror images of the phones. These reports include the retrieval of chats from the Snapchat app. According to an officer, the Snapchat conversations provide clear evidence of Lawrence Bishnoi's direct involvement, as his brother Anmol Bishnoi's name has surfaced in the investigation.

So far, the crime branch has arrested 10 people in connection with the case, including two shooters and the weapon suppliers. "We have uncovered two layers of the conspiracy so far, and the third layer involves the wanted accused Shubham Lonkar, Akhtar, and the main shooter, Shiv Kumar Gautam. Once we apprehend them, we will have a clearer understanding of the motive behind the murder," the officer added.

SRA angle

While the officers have not ruled out the possibility that the late leader and his son Zeeshan's opposition to certain Slum Rehabilitation Authority (SRA) projects could be a motive, they currently have no evidence to support this theory. They have received some documents from the SRA, which are being examined before any further questioning takes place in the case. Sources have revealed that Zeeshan had raised the issue of the SRA dispute during meetings with senior Mumbai Police officers. In one of his tweets, he stated that his father "died saving the lives and homes of poor, innocent people," hinting that the SRA projects could be linked to the murder case.

Officials have revealed that the shooters in the murder case practised shooting in Palsadri village, in Karjat. They practised in September and travelled daily by local train from Kurla to Lowjee railway station. The practice site is about 8 km from the station near a waterfall.

Facts about Anmol Bishnoi?

He is the younger brother of imprisoned gangster Lawrence Bishnoi, who is infamous for his involvement in various organised crimes, including extortion and threats against high-profile individuals. Anmol has been linked to several criminal activities, particularly those connected to his brother's gang. He is one of the main accused in the Salman Khan firing case and had instructed the shooters.