13 October,2024 12:33 PM IST | Mumbai | mid-day online correspondent
Police officials at the crime scene. Pic/Ashish Raje
Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde has announced that Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) leader Baba Siddique, who was shot dead in Mumbai, will be cremated with full state honours. Siddique, a former minister in the Maharashtra government (2004-2008) and chairman of the Maharashtra Housing and Area Development Authority (MHADA), will receive this honour in recognition of his public service, reported ANI.
The Mumbai Crime Branch has registered a case at Nirmal Nagar Police Station under Crime Registration No. 589/2024, invoking several sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), the Arms Act, and the Maharashtra Police Act.
Baba Siddique's funeral will be held today, stated the family in their media statement. His funeral will be held on Sunday, October 13 at 7 pm following the Maghrib Namaz at his residence in Bandra. The burial is scheduled for 8:30 pm at Bada Kabarastan, opposite Marine Lines station, the statement said.
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The Delhi Police's Special Cell has also dispatched a special investigation team to Mumbai to assist with the inquiry. According to accounts, a gangster's aim for murdering Siddique was to establish control in Mumbai.
Siddique, a prominent leader in Ajit Pawar's NCP faction, was shot near Nirmal Nagar in Bandra on the evening of October 12. Despite being taken to Lilavati Hospital, he died from his injuries late on Saturday night.
The Mumbai Crime Branch has identified two of the arrested suspects: Gurmail Singh of Haryana and Dharamraj Kashyap of Uttar Pradesh. According to police reports, the suspects were in Mumbai for about two months, conducting reconnaissance on Siddique's home and office before the fatal attack.
A manhunt is currently ongoing for a third suspect. Several Crime Branch teams are researching the matter from every angle.
In view of the unfortunate tragedy, the NCP has cancelled all scheduled programmes for October 13th. Siddique, a three-time MLA from Bandra West, joined Ajit Pawar's NCP in February this year after leaving the Congress.
With ANI inputs