The Mumbai Police on Tuesday arrested a 20-year-old man from Noida for allegedly issuing death threat to Zeeshan Siddiqui, son of NCP (Ajit Pawar) leader Baba Siddique, who was shot dead on October 12. The threat came via a phone call to the public relations office of Zeeshan, who is a member of Maharashtra Legislative Assembly, representing Bandra East.
According to police sources, an unidentified caller contacted Zeeshan Siddiqui's office on landline last Friday evening and threatened to kill Zeeshan and Bollywood actor Salman Khan, while also demanding ransom money.
Following the call, an employee at Zeeshan's office filed a complaint, on the basis of which a case was registered at the Nirmal Nagar police station.
Upon investigation, police identified the suspect, a 20-year-old man, and subsequently arrested him from Noida Sector 39. Mumbai Police has taken him into custody and shifted to transit remand.
The suspect, Mohammad Tayyab, a resident of Delhi, was detained by the Bandra police team. The Mumbai Police found no gang affiliations or mafia connection with Mohammad Tayyab so far, during initial questioning.
The authorities continue their investigation into the motive behind the threat and any potential accomplices.
Earlier, Mumbai Police had also apprehended 24-year-old Shaikh Hussain Shaikh Mausin from Jamshedpur, over a threat message received by Mumbai traffic police's WhatsApp helpline. He had demanded ₹ 5 crore as ransom.
Zeeshan's father and Nationalist Congress Party (NCP)'s senior leader Baba Ziauddin Siddique was shot dead near Nirmal Nagar, in Bandra East on October 12. Baba Siddique, a veteran Congress leader for decades and a close associate of the former Union Minister Sunil Dutt and his daughter Priya Dutt, Siddique had quit the party to throw his weight behind Ajit Pawar's NCP in February, ahead of the 2024 Lok Sabha elections.
Meanwhile, Zeeshan is set to contest Maharashtra elections on NCP ticket. He joined the NCP on October 25 in the presence of party President Ajit Pawar and state unit chief Sunil Tatkare and soon after, his nomination was announced. He will take on Shiv Sena-UBT nominee Varun Sardesai in Bandra East. Maharashtra is going to single-phase polls on November 20.
(With inputs from IANS)
