Former Maharashtra Minister and Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) leader Baba Siddique was shot dead in Mumbai, police confirmed on Saturday. He was attacked by unidentified assailants and rushed to Lilavati Hospital, where he succumbed to his injuries. Siddique, a threetime MLA from Bandra West, had joined Ajit Pawar’s NCP earlier this year after leaving the Congress.
Sources told ET that the police is now probing the involvement of the Lawrence Bishnoi gang given Siddhique’s proximity to Bollywood actor Salman Khan. The sources added that Siddique was involved in a dispute concerning an SRA project. The said angle is also being investigated. According to sources, three assailants came on a bike, fired at Baba while crackers were being burst.
Who Was Baba Siddique?Baba Siddique was a prominent political figure, having served three consecutive terms as an MLA from Bandra West in 1999, 2004, and 2009. He also held the position of Minister of State for Food & Civil Supplies, Labour, and FDA from 2004 to 2008. Before becoming an MLA, Siddique served as a Municipal Corporator for two terms from 1992 to 1997.He joined the Congress party as a teenager in 1977 and actively participated in student movements as a member of the National Students’ Union. of India (NSUI). Rising through the ranks, he became the General Secretary and later President of the Bandra Youth Congress by the early 1980s. In 1988, Siddique was appointed as the President of the Mumbai Youth Congress.
His political career further advanced when he was elected as a Municipal Councilor in 1992, a position he held for two terms. In 1999, he was elected as an MLA from Bandra West and reelected in 2004 and 2009. Siddique was also appointed as Chairman of the MHADA Mumbai Board (20002004) and played a key role in local development, including funding the creation. of an EcoGarden in BandraKhar in 2011.
Siddique’s political journey took a turn in February 2024, when he resigned from the Congress and joined the NCP led by Ajit Pawar.