Mumbai cops make 24th arrest in Baba Siddique murder case, nab 22-year-old from Punjab

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The Mumbai Police Crime Branch, in coordination with the Anti-Gangster Task Force (AGTF) of Punjab, arrested another person in connection with the Baba Siddique murder case, on Saturday. The accused, Akashdeep Karajsingh Gill, was apprehended in a joint operation carried out in the Fazilka district of Punjab.

The 22-year-old is a resident of Pacca Chisti village in Fazilka tehsil. He is booked for several charges under various sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), the Arms Act, and the Maharashtra Police Act (MPA).

Gill is being brought to Mumbai on transit remand for further legal proceedings in connection with the Baba Siddique murder case.

"He provided logistic support in the shooting. He was held from Fazilka tehsil there. Gill is being brought to Mumbai on transit remand for further legal action," an officer informed.

Further details are awaited.

This is the 24th arrest made by the Mumbai Polcie in the Baba Siddique murder case, the officer said.

Siddique, a former state minister and Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) leader, was gunned down on October 12 in the Nirmal Nagar area of Bandra (East), near the office of his legislator son Zeeshan.

Mumbai Police recently got a major breakthrough in the case when it arrested the purported main shooter Shivkumar Gautam from Bahraich in Uttar Pradesh.

Gautam, who was on the run since October 12, was held while trying to flee to Nepal, the police alleged.

Main shooter panicked, I took lead: Baba Siddique shooter

The investigation into the Baba Siddique murder case by the Mumbai Crime Branch has revealed that Gurmail Singh, who was arrested along with Dharmraj Kashyap near the crime scene, was the main shooter and was initially supposed to lead Kashyap and Shivakumar Gautam. Gautam was arrested 27 days after the murder from his hometown in Bahraich (Uttar Pradesh).

According to officials, this revelation surfaced after Gautam's arrest earlier this week. Gautam stated that, under instructions from the key conspirator Shubham Lonkar, Singh was intended to lead him and Kashyap. However, on the day of the incident, when Siddique was gunned down, the plan changed as Singh and Kashyap panicked. Gautam took the lead, shooting Siddique while a suspended police constable assigned to Siddique's protection stood seven to eight feet away.

(With PTI inputs)