Baba Siddique's shooters threw chilli powder at cops, mastermind still out of reach

Among the three, two men- Gurmel Baljit Singh from Haryana and Dharmaraj Kashyap from Uttar Pradesh- have been arrested.

The third accused- Shivkumar Gautam- is on the run.

As per the plan, Gurmel and Dharmaraj were about to shoot the NCP leader but later Shivkumar took the charge in view of the security cover.

The Dussehra procession and fireworks were treated by the accused as the cover under which the shooters decided to execute the plan.

While Gurmel and Dharmaraj were caught, Shivkumar took to his heels and fled hiding in the crowd.

Meanwhile, the Lawrence Bishnoi gang has taken responsibility for the killing of Siddique, an ex-Maharashtra minister and a former Congress leader.

The 66-year-old NCP leader was shot dead outside his son Zeeshan Siddique's office in Bandra East, Mumbai, on Saturday night.

Police are also searching for a fourth accused believed to be the mastermind behind the crime.

The attack occurred around 9:30 pm when assailants opened fire, targeting Siddique and his associate, with multiple bullets fatally hitting the politician in the chest. A few hours later, the infamous Bishnoi gang claimed responsibility for the assassination in a social media post.

Central agencies are now investigating the post, which is allegedly linked to a Facebook account under the name Shibu Lonkar.

Sources indicated this may actually be Shubham Rameshwar Lonkar, an associate of the Bishnoi gang.

Shubham Lonkar was arrested earlier this year in Akola, Maharashtra, for illegal weapons possession and is believed to have strong ties to the Bishnoi network.

During questioning, Shubham admitted to having video call communications with Anmol Bishnoi, Lawrence Bishnoi's brother, further connecting him to the gang leader.

The suspects had been tracking Siddique for several months, conducting surveillance on both his home and office, according to police.

Police revealed that each suspect received an advance payment of Rs 50,000 for the assassination, and were provided the firearms just days before the killing.

The two arrested suspects are currently in police custody, while the search for the remaining accused continues.

Meanwhile, Mumbai Police have also increased security around Salman Khan's residence, where a previous shooting incident occurred.

On the night of April 14, gunfire shook Mumbai's Bandra neighbourhood when two men on motorbikes fired multiple rounds outside Salman Khan's residence.

The attackers, linked to the Lawrence Bishnoi gang, were charged with conspiracy to murder and other serious crimes.