MUMBAI, 13 October, 2024: Police have launched an investigation into the killing of former Maharashtra minister Baba Siddique, 66, from various angles, including possible contract killing, business rivalry, or threats over a slum rehabilitation project, officials said on Sunday.
Siddique, a three-time MLA from Bandra West and a prominent member of the Ajit Pawar faction of the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP), was gunned down by three assailants outside his son Zeeshan Siddique’s office in Kher Nagar, Bandra, on Saturday night. He was declared dead at 11:27 p.m. at Lilavati Hospital.
Police said the attackers fired at least four shots from a 9.9 mm pistol, which was recovered at the scene. Witnesses were distracted by the noise of firecrackers from a nearby Durga visarjan procession, allowing the shooters to escape unnoticed.
Two suspects from Uttar Pradesh and Haryana have been arrested, and a third remains at large. Authorities are reviewing CCTV footage and analyzing forensic evidence. The case has been handed over to the Crime Branch for further investigation.
The killing, occurring just weeks before the state assembly elections, has raised concerns about law and order in Maharashtra. Opposition leaders have questioned the government’s ability to ensure public safety.
Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar expressed shock over Siddique’s death, calling him a “champion of secularism” and promising a thorough investigation. Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde echoed these sentiments, vowing strict action against the culprits and pledging to prevent gang violence in Mumbai.
Siddique, a close friend of several Bollywood stars, had recently joined Pawar’s NCP after decades with the Congress Party. His death marks the first high-profile political assassination in Mumbai in three decades, leaving the state in shock ahead of the upcoming elections.
(With PTI Inputs)
