29 May,2026 10:11 PM IST | Mumbai | mid-day online correspondent
Baba Siddique was shot dead in Mumbai’s Bandra East area on the night of October 12, 2024. File Pic
A special Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act (MCOCA) court in Mumbai on Friday rejected the bail plea of an accused in the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) leader Baba Siddique murder case, reported the PTI.
The court said there was sufficient material on record to show the accused, Amol Gaikwad, was involved in harbouring the shooters after the murder and was connected to the larger criminal conspiracy.
Baba Siddique, 66, was shot dead by three assailants outside the office of his son Zeeshan Siddique in Mumbai's Bandra East area on the night of October 12. 2024.
The case is being investigated under the MCOCA.
Special MCOCA Judge Satyanarayan R Navander said Gaikwad's alleged role in providing shelter to the shooters after the crime linked him directly to the organised crime syndicate involved in the murder, according to the PTI.
The court observed that his role could not be considered less significant than that of the other accused persons in the case.
According to the prosecution, Gaikwad knowingly helped the shooters after the murder was carried out.
Gaikwad sought bail claiming he was innocent and had been falsely implicated in the case.
His lawyer, Advocate Siddharth Agrawal, argued that the investigating officer failed to follow mandatory legal procedures under sections 47 and 48 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS), making the arrest defective, as per the PTI.
The defence also claimed that Gaikwad's confessional statement had been obtained under pressure and threats.
Special public prosecutor Mahesh Mule and lawyers representing the victim's side opposed the bail application.
They argued that Gaikwad had a specific role in the conspiracy and actively assisted the organised crime syndicate by sheltering the shooters after the killing, the news agency reported.
After reviewing the material placed before the court, the judge said there was prima facie evidence showing Gaikwad's involvement in the conspiracy.
The defence had also argued that another accused, Akashdeep Karaj Singh, had already been granted bail by the Bombay High Court.
However, the court said the allegations against Singh were different, and the Bombay High Court had granted him bail because his involvement in the crime appeared doubtful, reported the PTI.
The special court noted that Gaikwad's alleged role was specific and clearly supported by evidence on record.
So far, 27 arrested accused have been chargesheeted in the case.
Anmol Bishnoi, brother of jailed gangster Lawrence Bishnoi, along with two others, has been listed as wanted accused in the case.
All accused have been booked under MCOCA and are currently in judicial custody.
(with PTI inputs)
