Siddique murder: Mumbai cops search in MP for 3rd shooter who flaunted 'gangster' status
Mumbai (PTI): Police have scoured places of worship in Madhya Pradesh's Ujjain and Khandwa in their hunt for the third shooter wanted in connection with the killing of NCP leader Baba Siddique.
Six rounds were fired on Baba Siddique, two of which hit the former Maharashtra minister on the chest, outside his MLA son Zeeshan Siddique's office in Mumbai's Nirmal Nagar between 9.15 pm and 9.30 pm on Saturday.
Police have so far arrested three persons - Haryana resident Gurmail Baljit Singh (23), Uttar Pradesh native Dharmaraj Rajesh Kashyap (19), both alleged shooters, and "co-conspirator" Pravin Lonkar from Pune.
Another suspected shooter Shivkumar Gautam, who hails from Bahraich in UP and is on the run, took to posting online content in recent months, flaunting his "gangster" status.
"Yaar tera gangster hai jaani (your friend is a gangster)", Gautam captioned his photo post on his Instagram account on July 24. The photo showed him on a motorcycle as a Haryanvi song played in the background.
Suspected "handler" Mohammad Yasin Akhtar is also wanted in the case.
The Mumbai police's search for Gautam continued for the second day on Monday in Madhya Pradesh with joint teams focusing on places of worship in Ujjain and Khandwa districts, officials said.
A senior police official in MP's Khandwa district on Monday said the shooters arrested by Mumbai police have told their interrogators that they had visited some places of worship.
There was a possibility that the accused, while on the run, may visit these places again, he said.
Asked about these two districts having 'jyotirlingas' and whether the accused may be a devotee, the official said he would not offer a comment.
Khandwa shares a border with Maharashtra, the official noted, adding that "we have received no inputs about his whereabouts".
Ujjain and Khandwa are famous for the Mahakal and Omkareshwar temples which attract thousands of people every day.
A top Ujjain police official on Monday evening said the team from Mumbai was still in the district. They have not been able to find any leads so far, he added.
A Mumbai police team reached MP on Sunday, a day after Siddique was shot dead.
Police were also verifying a social media post, attributed to a purported member of the Lawrence Bishnoi gang, owning up to the murder of Siddique.
The crime branch was probing various angles, including a possible contract killing, business or political rivalry or threat over a slum rehabilitation project, officials said.
The Mumbai police have set up 15 teams which fanned out of Maharashtra in search of individuals linked to the high-profile murder.
Suspected shooter Gautam hails from Gandara village in Bahraich district, where locals and police said he had no criminal history. They said he had gone to work at a scrap shop in Maharashtra's Pune.
An Instagram post by him on July 8 was captioned "Sharif baap hai # (expletives) hum nahin".
On May 26, he posted a brief video of a city skyline along with background music from "KGF", a film about a mercenary, with its dialogue "powerful people make places powerful".
The third accused in the case - Pravin Lonkar - was produced in a Mumbai court which remanded him in police custody till October 21. He is accused of "enlisting" two of the three alleged shooters who opened fire at Siddique.
As per the police, Pravin Lonkar's brother Shubham Lonkar, who is yet to be apprehended, is allegedly associated with jailed gangster Lawrence Bishnoi.
The prosecution claimed Shubham Lonkar and other wanted accused had conspired the shooting and supplied arms to the gunmen who attacked the 66-year-old politician.
Pravin Lonkar has to be taken to Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan and Bihar for further probe and hence his custody was required, police told court.
Meanwhile, the Punjab police said Yasin Akhtar (21), one of the suspects in the killing of Siddique and a resident of Shankar village in Jalandhar district, was facing nine heinous criminal cases, including for murder and attempt to murder.
Akhtar was arrested in a criminal case in June 2022 and has not visited his village after he was released in June 2024, police said.
Akhtar is suspected to have links with gangster Vikram Brar.
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Rupee falls 28 paise to 94.77 against US dollar in early trade
Mumbai (PTI): The rupee depreciated 28 paise to 94.77 against the US dollar in early trade on Thursday as market sentiment took a dramatic turn after reports emerged that the US and Iran are discussing a 14-point Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) aimed at reducing tensions and reopening negotiations.
Forex traders said Brent oil prices, which had fallen to USD 98 on the US-Iran peace deal, edged slightly higher to USD 101 per barrel after investors weighed the prospects for a Middle East peace deal.
Moreover, factors such as unabated foreign capital outflows amid rising geopolitical uncertainties further dented investor sentiment.
At the interbank foreign exchange market, the rupee opened at 94.77 against the US dollar, registering a fall of 28 paise over its previous close.
On Wednesday, the rupee appreciated 69 paise to close at 94.49 against the US dollar.
"Markets are currently focused on the critical 48-hour window during which the US expects Tehran’s formal response through Pakistani mediators," said CR Forex Advisors MD Amit Pabari.
US President Donald Trump on Wednesday threatened Iran with more bombing if it doesn't reopen the Strait of Hormuz, amid a report that the warring sides were nearing an agreement to end the war.
US media outlet Axios reported, quoting US officials and two other sources, that the US and Iran were getting close to a one-page memorandum of understanding to end the war and set a framework for more detailed nuclear negotiations.
The US expects Iranian responses on several key points over the next 48 hours, Axios reported, adding that nothing has been agreed yet. This was the closest the parties had been to an agreement since the war began.
Meanwhile, the dollar index, which gauges the greenback's strength against a basket of six currencies, was trading at 98.01, down 0.01 per cent.
Brent crude, the global oil benchmark, was trading higher by 0.65 per cent at USD 101.83 per barrel in futures trade.
On the domestic equity market front, the 30-share benchmark index Sensex declined 160.24 points to 77,798.28 in early trade, while the Nifty was down 30.25 points to 24,300.70.
Foreign Institutional Investors offloaded equities worth Rs 5,834.90 crore on Wednesday, according to exchange data.
On the domestic macroeconomic front, the country's goods and services exports rose 4.6 per cent to an all-time high of USD 863.11 billion during 2025-26, up from USD 825.26 billion in 2024-25, despite global economic uncertainties, according to revised commerce ministry data.
Merchandise exports grew 0.93 per cent to USD 441.78 billion in the last fiscal year from USD 437.70 billion in 2024-25, the data showed.
