A senior politician in India’s financial capital, Mumbai, who was also known for his close ties with Bollywood, has been shot dead weeks before a key state election.
Baba Siddique, 66, was shot multiple times outside his son’s office in Mumbai on Saturday night, police said. He died from his wounds at the city’s Lilavati Hospital.
Mr Siddique was associated with the Indian National Congress party for decades but had recently joined a regional party that rules the state of Maharashtra.
He was also close to several Bollywood stars and was known for throwing lavish parties.
News agency Press Trust of India reported that two suspected attackers had been arrested, and police were searching for another.
Two of the attackers were named locally as Gurmail Baljit Singh, 23, a resident of Haryana, and Dharmaraj Rajesh Kashyap, 19, a native of Uttar Pradesh.
Broadcaster NDTV said the two suspects claimed they were part of a crime gang run by Lawrence Bishnoi, who is in jail accused of running a crime gang that has carried out multiple killings.
The shooting comes just weeks after Siddique’s security detail was upgraded after he received death threats, and ahead of elections slated for later this year.
Maharashtra’s deputy chief minister Ajit Pawar, from the same party as Siddique, said he was ‘shocked’ by the ‘cowardly attack’.
‘The incident will be thoroughly investigated and strict action will be taken against the attackers,’ Pawar said in a statement. ‘The mastermind behind the attack will also be traced.’
Several Bollywood actors close to Siddique also expressed their sorrow following his death.
Actor Riteish Deshmukh said on X: ‘My heart goes out to @zeeshan_iyc and the entire family- May god give them strength to brave this difficult time. The perpetrators of this horrific crime must be brought to justice.’