THE MURDER OF former minister and Nationalist Congress Party (Ajit Pawar) leader Baba Ziauddin Siddique, known popularly as Baba Siddique, has shocked not just the political establishment and movie stars he was associated with, but also the common people of Mumbai as such a gangland operation with a high-profile target belonged to a bygone era of underworld violence.
Siddique, 66, was gunned down on the night of Dussehra (October 12) outside the Bandra East office of his legislator son Zeeshan. As people were bursting firecrackers, three assailants emerged from the crowd, neutralised the three-time former MLA’s personal security officer and opened fire from close range.
The news about the attack stunned political and cinema circles as Siddique was well liked by the film industry. Two of the three assailants―Gurmail Singh and Dharmaraj Kashyap―were arrested, while the third, Shivkumar Gautam, managed to escape in the confusion after the shooting.
The police also arrested Pravin Lonkar, brother of Shubham Lonkar, who claimed responsibility for the murder on social media. (Shubham was questioned by the police earlier in a case pertaining to the firing outside actor Salman Khan’s residence.) A case has been registered against him under the Arms Act. According to reports, the police are probing angles of business rivalry, role of the Lawrence Bishnoi gang (Shubham is said to be associated with the gang) and a possible dispute over a slum rehabilitation project as possible motives behind the killing.
Siddique’s political career started with the Congress, which he joined as a teenager. He rose quickly through the ranks, becoming a legislator in 1999. He served as a minister in the Vilasrao Deshmukh-led government from 2004 to 2008. Earlier this year, he joined the Ajit Pawar faction of the NCP and was seen as a bridge between the party and the Muslim minority in Mumbai. A newspaper speculated that Siddique’s son Zeeshan, who is with the Congress, was also a target, but he was not present when the assailants struck.
Actor Salman Khan with Baba Siddique (right) | PTI
Mumbai has a history of political assassinations, dating back to the murder of CPI(M) legislator Krishna Desai, committed allegedly by the Shiv Sainiks in June 1970. In 1991, Shiv Sena legislator Vitthal Chavan was killed by the underworld. Chavan’s death was followed by the murder of Ramdas Nayak, head of the Mumbai BJP and a legislator from Bandra West, in 1994. Nayak was allegedly killed by the Dawood Ibrahim gang. After Nayak, it was the turn of Dr Datta Samant, the prominent trade union leader, who was shot dead in 1997, allegedly by the Chhota Rajan gang.
At the time of filing this report, police teams are looking for Shubham, Shivkumar and Mohammad Zeeshan Akhtar, another accused in the case. The Lonkars are suspected to be the masterminds behind the attack. The police suspect the role of the Bishnoi gang because of Siddique’s proximity to Salman Khan who has received threats from the gang. Siddique could have been targeted also because of his alleged contacts in the Dawood Ibrahim network.
According to the police, the conspiracy was hatched in Pune where the Lonkars are based. Shivkumar and Kashyap were working in a scrap shop in Pune, close to a dairy owned by the Lonkars. The brothers provided logistics and money for the shooters.
Shivkumar first moved to Mumbai and rented a flat in Kurla, a central Mumbai suburb. He then brought Kashyap and Gurmail from Haryana. They were paid Rs50,000 each, and were given a bike to recce the area near Siddique’s home and office in Bandra. Akhtar, who is said to have a criminal record, was also in touch with the trio. On the night of the shooting, Shivkumar took position opposite Siddique and opened fire, while Kashyap and Gurmail stood behind him. Gurmail also had a canister of pepper spray with him.
Siddique’s murder has sparked a political war, with the opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi alleging that the murder of a ruling party leader showed the total collapse of law and order. It asked Chief Minister Eknath Shinde and his two deputies―Devendra Fadnavis and Ajit Pawar―to resign. Shinde called the murder unfortunate and claimed that the assailants were from Haryana and Uttar Pradesh. “They will not be spared no matter who they are, be it the Bishnoi gang or the underworld gang,”he said. “Those who are receiving threats, their safety is the state government’s responsibility and it will fulfil its responsibility.”