LUCKOW: In a major breakthrough in the high-profile murder case of Baba Siddiqui, a prominent figure from Mumbai, the Uttar Pradesh Special Task Force (STF) successfully arrested the main shooter, Shiv Kumar, alias Shiva, along with four of his accomplices on November 10, 2024. The arrests took place in the Bahraich district of Uttar Pradesh.
Those arrested were Shiv Kumar Gautam, alias Shiva – resident of Gandara village, Kaiserganj, Bahraich (main shooter), Anurag Kashyap – resident of Gandara village, Kaiserganj, Bahraich (brother of shooter Dharmraj Kashyap, aide), Gyan Prakash Tripathi – resident of Gandara village, Kaiserganj, Bahraich (aide/helper) and Akash Srivastava – resident of Gandara village, Kaiserganj, Bahraich (aide/helper) and Akhileshendra Pratap Singh – resident of Gandara village, Kaiserganj, Bahraich (aide/helper).
STF said that on the night of October 12, 2024, three unknown shooters killed Ziauddin Abdul Rahim Siddiqui, popularly known as Baba Siddiqui, near the office of his son, Zishan Siddiqui, in Khairnagar, Thane, Mumbai. Baba Siddiqui, a former Maharashtra minister and close associate of actor Salman Khan, was killed in a well-orchestrated attack.
The murder was registered at Nirmal Nagar police station, Thane, Mumbai. During the investigation, two shooters, Dharmraj Kashyap and Gurmel Singh, were arrested, but one of the shooters, Shiv Kumar, managed to escape.
The arrested shooters revealed that the murder was carried out on the orders of notorious gangster Lawrence Bishnoi, who is currently serving a prison sentence. Bishnoi’s associates, Shubham Lonkar from Maharashtra and Mohammad Yaseen Akhtar from Jalandhar, were identified as the handlers who provided logistics and information regarding the victim’s location.
On October 23, 2024, the Mumbai Police requested assistance from the Uttar Pradesh STF to arrest Shiv Kumar and other fugitives involved in the murder.
It was during this operation that information surfaced that Shiv Kumar was hiding in Bahraich, planning to escape to Nepal.
On November 10, 2024, the STF team, in collaboration with the Mumbai Crime Branch, gathered crucial intelligence from a tip-off and proceeded to the Nainapara area of Bahraich.
According to the information, Shiv Kumar and his accomplices were preparing to flee to Nepal and were hiding near Harabhasri Nahar Pulliya. At this location, the STF and Mumbai crime branch teams arrested Shiv Kumar and four others.
Deputy SP of STF Pramesh Shukla, said that during questioning, Shiv Kumar revealed that he and Dharmraj Kashyap hailed from the same village and had previously worked together in Pune in the scrap business.
“Shiv Kumar also disclosed that he had been in contact with Shubham Lonkar, who worked for Lawrence Bishnoi. Through Snapchat, he communicated with Anmol Bishnoi, the brother of Lawrence, who instructed him to carry out the murder in exchange for a promised payment of Rs 10 lakh and ongoing financial support,” said Shukla
Shiv Kumar further explained that he and his fellow shooters, including Dharmraj, were involved in surveillance of Baba Siddiqui for several days before executing the murder on the night of October 12, 2024. He also mentioned that the attack took place during a festival, which helped them blend into the crowd, resulting in the arrest of two of the shooters while Shiv Kumar managed to escape.
After fleeing Mumbai, Shiv Kumar travelled through Pune, Jhansi, and Lucknow before reaching Bahraich. He had been in constant contact with his handlers and accomplices throughout the journey. According to Shiv Kumar, his associates, Anurag Kashyap, Gyan Prakash Tripathi, Akash Srivastava, and Akhileshendra Pratap Singh, had made arrangements for his escape to Nepal.