The Lawrence Bishnoi gang has reportedly claimed responsibility for the assassination of former Maharashtra minister Baba Siddique, while also issuing a direct threat to Bollywood star Salman Khan. The gang, which has previously targeted Salman, allegedly delivered the warning through a Facebook post attributed to Shubham Lonkar, a gang associate.
In the post, Lonkar connected Siddique’s murder to the death of Anuj Thapan, who died by suicide on May 1 while in custody. Thapan had been detained after firing shots outside Salman Khan’s Mumbai apartment on April 14. The post accused Salman Khan of being responsible for Thapan’s death and claimed that Siddique’s killing was linked to his connections with Dawood Ibrahim and Thapan, involving Bollywood, politics, and property dealings.
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Addressing Salman, the post read, “We did not want this war, but you made our brother lose his life. We have no personal enmity, but anyone aiding Salman Khan or the Dawood gang should be prepared for retaliation.” The police have not yet verified the authenticity of the post, but they have arrested Pravin Lonkar, Shubham’s brother, suspected to be a co-conspirator in Siddique’s murder. The search for Shubham is ongoing.
Baba Siddique, 66, a former minister and Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) leader, was shot by three assailants outside his son Zeeshan Siddique’s office in Bandra on Saturday night. Although rushed to Lilavati Hospital, he was pronounced dead on arrival. According to the crime branch, Pravin Lonkar and Shubham reportedly hired two shooters—Dharmaraj Rajesh Kashyap from Uttar Pradesh, who has been apprehended, and Shivkumar Gautam, who remains at large. The police also arrested Gurmail Baljit Singh, a 23-year-old from Haryana.
Salman Khan, a close friend of Siddique, visited the hospital and Siddique’s home to offer his condolences. Siddique was well-known in Bollywood, famous for hosting grand Iftar parties, including one that facilitated a reconciliation between Salman Khan and Shah Rukh Khan after a five-year rift.
The Bishnoi gang’s animosity toward Salman Khan dates back to the 1998 Blackbuck poaching case, where the Bollywood actor was accused of killing blackbucks, which are sacred to the Bishnoi community. Earlier this year, Salman received email threats from the gang, and on April 14, shots were fired outside his residence. The police have ramped up security around Salman Khan in light of these renewed threats, as investigations continue.
