Mumbai, February 10 A special court here on Tuesday framed charges under the Maharashtra Control of Organized Crime Act (MCOCA) and the Bombay Negotiable Instruments and Stamp Act against 27 accused in the 2024 murder case of former Maharashtra minister and NCP politician Baba Siddique after they pleaded not guilty.
Framing of charges is the first stage in a criminal trial under the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS), where the court formalizes accusations based on evidence.
The court, in its previous hearing, noted that there is sufficient material to proceed against all the accused and directed them to remain present before it on Tuesday.
However, only 15 accused, lodged in Kalyan and Arthur Road jails, were present. The other accused, lodged in a jail in Thane, were produced through video conferencing as they could not be brought to the court in South Mumbai due to logistical issues.
Special Judge Satyanarayan R. Navander recorded the pleas of all the accused, who all pleaded not guilty and preferred to stand trial.
Siddique (66) was shot dead by three assailants outside his son Zeeshan's office in Mumbai's Bandra (East) area on the night of October 12, 2024.
The accused have been charged with offenses of murder, endangering the life or personal safety of others, joint liability (common intention), forgery, and using forged documents (often related to fake IDs or vehicle papers), causing the disappearance of evidence or providing false information to conceal an offender, and criminal conspiracy, under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS).
The charges were also framed under the provisions of the Maharashtra Control of Organized Crime Act (MCOCA), the Arms Act, and the Maharashtra Police Act.
The 27 arrested individuals, including shooters Gurmail Singh, Dharmaraj Rajesh Kashyap, and Shivkumar Gautam, have been charge-sheeted.
Anmol Bishnoi, the brother of jailed gangster Lawrence Bishnoi, and Shubham Lonkar, allegedly linked to the Bishnoi gang, have been shown as wanted accused in the case.
According to the prosecution, Anmol Bishnoi allegedly hatched a conspiracy to kill Siddique with the intention of instilling fear and dominance over the crime syndicate.
In his statement recorded by the police, Shivkumar Gautam had revealed that Bishnoi had ordered the killing of Siddique for his links with Dawood Ibrahim and involvement in the 1993 Bombay serial blasts.
The statement, which is part of the probe agency's charge sheet, maintained that the instruction was to kill the former state minister or his son. The shooters were promised around Rs 15 lakh for executing the crime.
Initially, the accused were booked under the provisions of the BNS for murder. Subsequently, stringent provisions of MCOCA were invoked against all the accused after the conspiracy angle came to light during the investigation.
