Upping the ante over the brutal murder of NCP (Ajit Pawar) leader and three-time former MLA Baba Ziauddin Siddique, the Opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) on Sunday charged that there was a breakdown of law and order in Maharashtra ahead of the State Assembly polls.

In an incident that sent shock waves through the city, Baba Siddique was shot dead by three miscreants outside his MLA-son Zeeshan B. Siddique’s office at Nirmal Nagar in Bandra (East) here on Saturday night.   

A former minister, 66-year-old Baba Siddique --- who had initially been with the Congress for more than three and a half decades before joining to the Ajit Pawar-led NCP in February this year for some reasons – suffered three bullet wounds – two in his chest and one in his abdomen – after seven rounds of fire were opened at him by the miscreants. He succumbed to bullet wounds late at the nearby Lilavati Hospital.

Expressing serious concern over Baba Siddique’s murder, leader of the Opposition in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi wrote on “X”: “The tragic demise of Baba Siddique ji is shocking and saddening. My thoughts are with his family in this difficult time. This horrifying incident exposes the complete collapse of law and order in Maharashtra. The government must take responsibility, and justice must prevail”.

At a joint news conference called later in the afternoon to release a charge-sheet against the ruling BJP-led MahaYuti, leaders of the three constituent parties – Congress, NCP and Shiv Sena (UBT) – attacked the Eknath Shinde-led government aqnd asked State Home Minister Devendra Fadnavis of the BJP to take responsibility for Baha Siddique’s murder      

Condemning the incident, NCP chief Sharad Pawar said: “If the Home Minister and the rulers are going to push the cart of the state so mildly, it can be an alarm bell for the common people. There is a need not only to investigate this, but deputy chief minister Devendra Fadnavis, who holds the state Home portfolio, should accept the responsibility and step down from his post"

Shiv Sena (UBT) president Uddhav Thackeray hit out at BJP-led MahaYuti government for Siddiqui’s murder and the earlier encounter-death of Badlapur children sexual assault key accused.

“Whether it is the arrest of accused in Baba Siddique's murder or the encounter of Akshay Shinde (rape accused), suspicions are being raised on every act of this government and this is not a good thing. We are not sure who these arrested accused are. They (Maharashtra govt) are keeping tabs on our movements but are not watching the criminals,,”Uddhav said

Asking chief minister Eknath Shinde to take responsibility for Siddique's murder, Congress Legislature Party (CLP) leader Balasaheb Thorat said: “Siddique’s murder is unfortunate. The killing of an important person took place on a road. The law and order has broken down in the state.  The MahaYuti government has lost control over the state. More than the Home Minister, the chief minister should take responsibility for the incident,” he said.   

Shiv Sena’s Rajya Sabha member Priyanka Chaturvedi said: “ Maharashtra hasn’t seen such a state of collapse in its law and order. This death is a grim reminder of the 80s decade of Mumbai. Siddique's is the fourth political murder that has taken place in Mumbai and neighbouring Thane district during the current year.

Listing the four political murders that took place during the current year, Priyanka said: “On February 3, 2024 BJP MLA Ganpat Gaikwad opened fire on Mahesh Gaikwad, the Shinde Sena chief of Kalyan, inside a police station. On February 9, Sena (UBT) leader Abhishek Ghosalkar was shot dead by Mauris Noronha alias Mauris Bhai. In October 2024, Sachin Kurmi, member of the NCP (AP), was fatally stabbed in Byculla (E). On October 12, Baba Siddique , NCP(AP) shot dead in Bandra despite knowing he was receiving death threats and had Y category security”

The murder of NCP (AP )leader Baba Siddique is of considerable importance. A Congressman all through his life, he had joined the NCP (Ajit Pawar) in February this year.

He was a close associate of former Union Minister Sunil Dutt and his daughter Priya Dutt, actors Sanjay Dutt, Salman Khan and Sharukh Khan. A popular figure in politics, Siddique brought about a truce between feuding film stars Shah Rukh Salman Khan at one stage in the distant past.

He was elected twice to the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporator as a corporator on the Congress ticket. Later on he was elected to the State Assembly for consecutive three terms – 1999, 2004 and 2009. His son Zeeshan is a Congress MLA from Bndra.

In 2014 Assembly polls, he had declared assets worth 775 crore. Later in 2017, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) conducted raids on his properties in connection with an alleged money laundering case linked to a slum rehabilitation project. He had reportedly not got approval from the BJP-led MahaYuti for a few of  his development projects, which was said to be one of the reasons for his joining the Ajit Pawar-led NCP in February this year.