Highlights
Baba Siddique, born Ziauddin Siddique, died late on Saturday after being shot at multiple times by unidentified persons, as per Mumbai Police. He succumbed to his injuries at Lilavati Hospital in Maharashtra. Officials called his condition at the time of admission critical.
The 66-year-old seasoned politician from Mumbai apparently sustained injuries in the chest and abdomen. Three assailants are believed to be involved in the attack, and a couple of them have already been taken into police custody, as per reports.
VIDEO | Maharashtra CM Eknath Shinde (@mieknathshinde) speaks on shooting at NCP leader Baba Siddiqui.
— Press Trust of India (@PTI_News) October 12, 2024
An unidentified person fired at and injured Baba Siddiqui of the Ajit Pawar-led NCP in Mumbai's Bandra East on Saturday evening. The firing took place outside his MLA son… pic.twitter.com/8vnNuZZqR2
Baba Siddique shot dead ahead of Maharashtra assembly election
The incident occurred near the office of his son Zeeshan. One of Siddique’s aides also suffered a gunshot injury. Calling the attack “extremely unfortunate”, Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde said he had spoken to the police and people at the hospital.
Shinde noted that the couple of suspects arrested in relation to the case are from Uttar Pradesh and Haryana. Several other politicians of the state have also expressed shock over the incident. Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis has reached the hospital, reports suggest.
The firing took place on the auspicious Indian festival of Dusshera and came ahead of the Maharashtra assembly elections – expected to be held later this year. Scroll through this article for a closer look into Baba Siddique’s life and his connection to the Hindi cinema.
राष्ट्रवादी काँग्रेसचे नेते, माजी राज्यमंत्री, विधिमंडळात प्रदीर्घकाळ राहिलेले माझे सहकारी बाबा सिद्दीकी यांच्यावर झालेल्या गोळीबाराची घटना अत्यंत दुर्दैवी, निषेधार्ह आणि वेदनादायी आहे. या घटनेत त्यांचं निधन झाल्याचं समजून मला धक्का बसला. मी माझा चांगला सहकारी, मित्र गमावला आहे.…
— Ajit Pawar (@AjitPawarSpeaks) October 12, 2024
Baba Siddique’s decorated political career
Baba Siddique entered the political arena by joining the Indian National Congress in 1977 as a teen. In 1980, he became General Secretary of the Bandra Taluka Youth Congress. In the next 2 years, he had risen to the position of President – a role he held until 1992.
In 1988, Siddique became a Member of the Legislative Assembly (MLA) for three consecutive terms. His first term started back in 1999 and the next ones happened around 2004 and 2009. He held several other important political positions during this period.
Throughout his career, the NCP leader has been a key part of student movements and youth leadership. He joined Nationalist Congress Party after quitting Congress in February 2024. But his connection to the film industry is something even more interesting.
Baba Siddique brings a clean end to Khan-Khan feud
You will forever be remembered for this.
— Classic Mojito (@classic_mojito) October 12, 2024
RIP #BabaSiddique 💔 pic.twitter.com/ssg8g6thfg
For the Hindi film industry, Baba Siddique is often a mediator. For instance, in 2013, he played a crucial role in ending the Shah Rukh Khan-Salman Khan feud. This politician brought an end to the fight in such a fashion that the 2 superstars became industry BFFs again.
That year, the Khans apparently didn’t have a pleasant relationship. The once good friends had a huge fallout at Katrina Kaif’s birthday and reportedly didn’t use to be on talking terms. The industry people didn’t like this tense situation.
But then Siddique entered – a person having little connection to cinema – and brought a clean end to the feud. The politician is prominent for his political activities. But there is another thing he is popular for, too. Ready to guess?
Baba Siddique’s iftar party proves instrumental
Baba Siddique’s iftar parties every Eid used to be the highlight of South Mumbai’s social circle. Several people attended these events, including the big celebrities of the film industry. In one of these parties, the infamous Khan-Khan feud ended.
It has been reported that Siddique had been requested to become a mediator by industry insiders. The NCP leader found a subtle method to do that. He seated Shah Rukh next to Salman’s father Salim Khan at the party. That did the trick, it is said.
In a video, Shah Rukh could be seen talking to Salim. Salman approaches the table next. Baba Siddique then joins them and requests the photographers to click a picture. Just like that, one of the biggest feuds of the Hindi film industry ceased to exist.
