Scrap workers, criminal background: All we know about Baba Siddique murder accused

The police have arrested Dharmaraj Rajesh Kashyap, Pravin Lonkar and Gurmail Baljit Singh, in connection with the murder of NCP leader Baba Siddique.

In Short

• Mumbai Police arrest two accused in Baba Siddique murder case
• Shooter Shiv Kumar, two others accused still at large
• Police probe role of Lawrence Bishnoi gang in NCP leader's murder

The Mumbai Police has arrested three people in connection with the murder of former Maharashtra minister Baba Siddique, who was shot outside his office on Saturday. Three other accused have been identified by the police and are absconding.

On Saturday evening, Baba Siddique was killed by three men who came out of a vehicle and, under the cover of the noise of bursting firecrackers, opened fire at the NCP leader. He was rushed to Lilavati Hospital, where he succumbed to his injuries.

The police have arrested two attackers, identified as Dharmaraj Rajesh Kashyap, 19, and Gurmail Baljit Singh, 23. They later arrested an accused identified as Pravin Lonkar. On Sunday, Kashyap and Singh were produced before a local court which sent Singh to police custody till October 21.

The court also ordered a bone ossification test for Kashyap to determine his real age. In court, Kashyap claimed that his age was 17.

As per initial investigation, the third shooter present with Kashyap and Singh was Shiv Kumar alias Shiva Gautam, 24, who is on the run. The police have also identified another accused, Mohammad Zeeshan Akhtar and Subu Lonkar.

Here's everything we know about the accused so far:

On Saturday evening, Dharmaraj, Shiv, and Gurmail reached outside Baba Siddique's MLA son Zeeshan Siddique's office in Mumbai's Bandra area. Baba Siddique was firing crackers near the office when he was shot.

According to Mumbai Police, the accused had brought pepper spray and planned to use it on Baba Siddique before firing at him. However, Shiv started firing directly at him.

While Baba Siddique's security men managed to catch Dharmaraj and Guramil, Shiv Kumar managed to flee.

Dharmaraj Rajesh Kashyap and Shiv Kumar are both natives of Uttar Pradesh. Gurmail is a native of Haryana, while Mohammad Zeeshan Akhtar is from Jalandhar in Punjab.

According to the police, Gurmail has a criminal history. He was arrested in a murder case in 2019 but was later released on bail.

His family said that they had disowned him 11 years ago. "His parents have died. The family has disowned him since past eleven years. He is nothing to us now," Gurmail's grandmother told reporters.

She said Gurmail came out of jail on bail three months ago but did not stay at home. "When he came home, he stayed for just a few minutes. I had gone out for some work, and by the time I returned, Gurmail had left," she said, adding that he had not maintained contact with the family.

Shiv Kumar and Dharmaraj, residents of Uttar Pradesh, did not have a criminal history. According to Shiv Kumar's mother, he had gone to Pune to work at a scrap shop and had last visited the village during Holi.

According to Kaiserganj Circle Officer Anil Kumar Singh, Shiv Kumar had gone to Maharashtra a few years ago to work as a labourer and had invited Dharmaraj to join him.

Dharmaraj's mother said she did not know what her son was doing in Mumbai. "He came home for Holi, but after that, he did not return. He wasn't even talking to me on the phone, so I cannot say anything about the incident," she said.

According to sources, Akhtar, a resident of Jalandhar, was lodged in Patiala jail. Seven cases are registered against him. He came out of jail on June 7 this year.

In the prison, he got in touch with the henchmen of the Lawrence Bishnoi gang, who allegedly gave him the contract to kill Baba Siddique.

The Lawrence Bishnoi gang has claimed responsibility for the murder of Baba Siddique, allegedly for his close ties with Bollywood actor Salman Khan. The actor has faced several threats from the Lawrence Bishnoi gang in the past, who accuse him of killing a blackbuck, a sacred animal to the Bishnoi community.

However, the police have not confirmed the involvement of the Lawrence Bishnoi gang in the murder so far and are investigating the claims.

With inputs by Vidya and Arvind Ojha