Main Shooter Arrested In Baba Siddique Case; Linked To Anmol Bishnoi
Mumbai Police have arrested Shiv Kumar Gautam, the main accused in the murder of NCP leader Baba Siddique, along with four aides, following a month-long manhunt.
Mumbai Police, in collaboration with Uttar Pradesh’s Special Task Force (STF), have arrested Shiv Kumar Gautam, the main accused in the murder of NCP leader Baba Siddique. Shiv Kumar was caught along with four of his aides in the village of Nanpara, located near the Nepal border in Bahraich district, Uttar Pradesh, after being on the run for nearly a month.
Baba Siddique was shot dead by three gunmen outside his son Zeeshan Siddique’s office in Bandra East on the night of October 12, 2024. Two suspects, Gurmail Singh from Haryana and Dharmaraj Kashyap from Uttar Pradesh, were arrested soon after, but Shiv Kumar managed to escape.
Shiv Kumar initially changed his shirt to blend in with the crowd during a Durga Puja procession, making it difficult for authorities to spot him. He travelled to Kurla in a local auto, then took a train to Thane and later continued his journey to Pune. After learning about Siddique’s death, Shiv Kumar reportedly traveled to Lucknow, Jhansi, and finally returned to his native village in Bahraich.
During this time, Shiv Kumar stayed in touch with his associates through public phones and bought a new SIM card in Lucknow to communicate with his aides. He was eventually tracked down after police monitored his close associates, some of whom were involved in helping him escape.
On November 10, police intercepted four of Shiv Kumar’s friends who were on their way to meet him. Their arrest led authorities to his hideout, where he was captured. The four men — Gyan Prakash Tripathi, Akash Srivastava, Akhileshendra Pratap Singh, and Anurag Kashyap (Dharmaraj Kashyap’s brother) — were arrested for sheltering Shiv Kumar and helping him evade capture.
With this arrest, the police have now detained 21 people in connection with the murder. Investigations revealed that Shiv Kumar had been in contact with gangster Anmol Bishnoi, the brother of jailed gangster Lawrence Bishnoi, who is believed to be in Canada. Anmol allegedly instructed Shiv Kumar to kill Baba Siddique or his son Zeeshan and promised him Rs 10 lakh for the job.
Shiv Kumar, who worked in a scrap shop in Pune, was reportedly encouraged by Anmol, who told him that the murder would benefit "God and society." The police have said that the murder was part of a larger plan by the Lawrence Bishnoi gang to instill fear and further their extortion activities.
The investigation continues, with Mumbai Police making significant progress in uncovering the full extent of the conspiracy behind Baba Siddique's murder.
