On October 12, 2024, former politician and MLA Baba Siddique was fatally shot outside his son’s Bandra office amid Dussehra celebrations. Police reported that three shooters fired six to seven rounds, striking Siddique in the abdomen and chest. The Lawrence Bishnoi gang claimed responsibility, with suspected motives linked to Siddique’s connections to Salman Khan and the Dawood gang. Siddique notably ended the feud between Salman Khan and Shah Rukh Khan in 2013, developing a close friendship with Salman since then.
The feud between Khan and the Bishnoi community dates back to 1998 when the actor and his “Hum Saath Saath Hain” co-stars were accused of hunting a blackbuck, an animal sacred to the Bishnois. Since then, Khan has reportedly faced threats, extortion, and public antagonism from the Lawrence Bishnoi gang. Despite attempts to make peace, including offering a blank cheque, the gang demands an apology from Khan in their village at their sacred temple. Khan, however, denies any involvement in the blackbuck’s killing.