Baba Siddique shot dead: NCP leader laid to rest with full state honours

Former Maharashtra Minister and Nationalist Congress Party NCP leader Baba Siddique was laid to rest with full state honours at Bada Qabrastan in Marine Lines on Sunday a day after he was shot dead in Bandra by three assailantsSeveral NCP leaders deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar Chhagan Bhujbal and Praful Patel attended the last rites at Bada Qabrastan news agency ANI reportedSiddique was shot outside his office in Nirmal Nagar He sustained two gunshot wounds to his chest and was rushed to Lilavati Hospital for emergency treatment where he succumbed to his injuries on Saturday nightDr Jalil Parkar a physician at Lilavati Hospital said Baba Siddique was brought in around 930 pm Upon arrival his pulse and blood pressure were unrecordable and the ECG showed a flat line We shifted him to the ICU but despite extensive resuscitative efforts he did not surviveOn Sunday the Mumbai Police announced the arrest of another suspect in the murder case 28yearold Pravin Lonkar in Pune ANI stated According to the police Pravin is the brother of Shubham Lonkar one of the conspirators involved in the plot along with Dharmaraj Kashyap and Shivkumar GautamThe Esplanade Court in Mumbai has remanded Gurmail Singh one of the accused in the shooting to Crime Branch custody until 21 October The court also ordered the second accused to be presented again after an ossification test reported ANIBaba Siddique shot dead CM pledges strict actionThe incident has sent shockwaves through political and Bollywood circlesEarlier on Saturday Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde visited Lilavati Hospital to meet Baba Siddiques family Maharashtra Deputy Chief Ministers Devendra Fadnavis and Ajit Pawar senior police officials Union Minister and RPIA chief Ramdas Athawale and Parth Pawar son of Ajit Pawar also visited the hospitalChief Minister Shinde pledged strict action against those responsible stating that such disregard for the law would not be toleratedShiv Sena leader Sanjay Nirupam described Siddiques death as a personal loss calling the incident worrying and unfortunate and praising Siddique as a very good personThe opposition has raised concerns about the state of law and order in Maharashtra Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge criticised the government stating that the incident reflects a failure of law enforcement and intelligence He remarked Despite knowing his life was at risk the police failed to protect him This is a significant lapse by the administration In a city like Mumbai the police must always be on high alertShiv Sena UBT leader Sanjay Raut also criticised the government saying The death of Baba Siddique who served Maharashtra for so long points to a failure on the part of the Chief Minister Maharashtra has always been known for good law and order which has attracted major industries to MumbaiBaba Siddique shot dead Great loss for Mahayuti says AthawaleUnion Minister Ramdas Athawale called for strict punishment for those involved in the murder describing Siddiques death as a great loss for the Mahayuti alliance He said Baba Siddique was a minority leader who also connected with the Dalit community We never imagined something like this would happen The murderers and those behind this must be brought to justiceSiddique who had been associated with the Congress for 35 years joined the NCP eight months agoBollywood celebrities also paid their last respects to Baba Siddique On Sunday actor Salman Khan visited Siddiques residence accompanied by his brother Sohail Khan and sister Arpita Khan Sharma Other actors including Zareen Khan Raj Kundra and Zaheer Iqbal also came to pay their final respectsWith ANI inputs