Even if an ant gets a threat, Bishnoi's name crops up: Gangster's lawyer

In an interview with India Today, Rajni Khatri, Lawrence Bishnoi's lawyer, said there was no evidence linking the gangster's involvement to the murder of NCP leader Baba Siddique.

In Short

• Bishnoi's lawyer says gangster's link to Baba Siddique murder not proved
• Baba Siddique was shot dead in Mumbai last week by three people
• Lawyer denies Bishnoi has connections with terrorists

Lawrence Bishnoi's lawyer said the gangster's involvement in the murder of NCP leader Baba Siddique was yet to be proved, and it was just an accusation made on social media. In an interview with India Today, Rajni Khatri, Bishnoi's lawyer, also denied that Bishnoi had connections with terrorists, saying there was no evidence.

"Lawrence Bishnoi's name has come up in the (Baba Siddique) murder case, but it is just an allegation. It should be investigated who put out the claim on social media," Khatri said.

Baba Siddique, a three-time MLA and former Maharashtra minister, was shot dead by three men outside his MLA son Zeeshan Siddiqui's office in Mumbai's Bandra last week. A member of the Lawrence Bishnoi gang, Shubham Lonkar, claimed responsibility for the murder in a social media post.

The post claimed that Siddique was targeted due to his alleged ties to terrorist Dawood Ibrahim, and the death of Anuj Thapan, a suspect in the shooting outside Salman Khan's house.

Thapan was found dead in police custody on May 1, with authorities saying that he died by suicide. However, Thapan's family alleged he was tortured.

"I want to ask the Chief Minister. A fast track court will investigate the murder of Baba Siddique, but Anuj Thapan's report has not come till date," Bishnoi's lawyer said.

On reports of Bishnoi running his network from behind bars, Khatri said, "Only audio has gone viral, no phone has been recovered till date."

Bishnoi has been in jail since 2014. He is currently lodged in Ahmedabad's Sabarmati Central Jail. However, his name has cropped up in connection with some of the most high-profile crimes, including the killing of popular Punjabi singer Sidhu Moosewala in 2022. He has also been linked to the murder of a gym owner who was shot dead in South Delhi's Greater Kailash area last month.

"Nowadays, even when an ant gets a threat, Lawrence's name comes up. An investigation is being done, and the whole truth will come out," Khatri said.

Denying Bishnoi's links to terrorists, the lawyer said, "Lots of people randomly throw around the name Lawrence when talking about their friends... There are many FIRs, nothing has been proved."