MUMBAI: After Mumbai Court's permission, Maharashtra police have forwarded documents to the Ministry of Home Affairs, which will work with the Ministry of External Affairs to coordinate with U.S. authorities for the extradition of jailed gangster Lawrence Bishnoi’s younger brother Anmol Bishnoi.
He has been named as an accused in some high-profile crimes, including the Baba Siddique murder case.
If the proposal gets approved, Mumbai Police's Crime Branch will secure custody of Anmol. The proposal was sent after the US authorities informed the Mumbai police about Anmol Bishnoi’s presence in their country.
Last month, the Mumbai police’s crime branch moved the special Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act (MCOCA) court here stating that it intends to “initiate the extradition procedure of fugitive criminal Anmol Bishnoi”.
It filed an affidavit “for further necessary action”, which was allowed by the special court. Both Lawrence and Anmol Bishnoi have been named as wanted accused in the April 14 firing incident outside the Bollywood actor Salman Khan’s Galaxy Apartment in Mumbai’s Bandra area.
Vicky Gupta and Sagar Pal had carried out the firing. They, along with Sonukumar Bishnoi, Mohammed Rafiq Choudhary and Harpal Singh, were arrested and are currently in judicial custody.
Accused Anujkumar Thapan committed suicide during his police custody. Additionally, the National Investigation Agency (NIA) has placed a Rs 10 lakh bounty on him, noting that he is linked to 18 criminal cases, including one involving the provision of weapons to the assailants who killed Punjabi singer Sidhu Moosewala in 2022.
Interestingly, despite ongoing efforts, the Mumbai Police have yet to secure custody of Lawrence Bishnoi, who is currently incarcerated at Sabarmati prison in Gujarat.
This development comes on the heels of heightened tensions between India and Canada, following allegations from the Royal Canadian Mounted Police about the Indian government that agents were collaborating with the Lawrence Bishnoi gang to instigate violence on Canadian soil—a claim that New Delhi has vehemently denied as unfounded.
NCP leader and former MLA Baba Siddique was shot dead by three gunmen near the office of his MLA son Zeeshan Siddique on October 12. The police have so far arrested 15 persons in connection with the murder. The role of the Bishnoi brothers, who hail from Fazilka in Punjab, is suspected in the case.
Lawrence Bishnoi is currently lodged in a jail in Sabarmati, Gujarat. A lookout circular was issued in April against Anmol Bishnoi, who had claimed responsibility for the firing incident outside Salman Khan’s residence.
An FIR was also registered by the NIA against nine accused, including both the Bishnoi brothers, in August 2022 for being part of a conspiracy to “raise funds, recruit youth to carry out terrorist acts in the Union Territory of Delhi and other parts of the country” besides “targeted killings of prominent persons”
