As many as nine people were arrested in connection with allegedly assaulting and killing a Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) worker in Mumbai's Malad East area. The deceased has been identified as Akash Maeen (27). On Saturday evening, Maeen was assaulted by a group of persons who gathered in support of an autorickshaw driver with whom he had an altercation at Shivaji Chowk, the Dindoshi police station official said.
"Maeen was kicked and punched, leaving him with serious injuries. He was rushed to a nearby hospital where he died," the police said. Based on CCTV footage, the police held six persons on Sunday and three on Monday. They have been charged under Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita for murder and other offences, the official said.
Mumbai rocked by Baba Siddique's murder
The latest news comes days after NCP leader Baba Siddique was shot dead by three gunmen in Mumbai. He was killed by three persons at Kher Nagar in Mumbai's Bandra area just outside his MLA son Zeeshan Siddique's office and fatally shot on Saturday night, October 12. The Mumbai police's search for the suspected shooter, Shivkumar Gautam, continued for the second day on Monday in Madhya Pradesh with joint teams focusing on places of worship in Ujjain and Khandwa districts.
Three arrested so far
Police have so far arrested three persons - Gurmail Baljit Singh (23), a resident of Haryana, Dharmaraj Rajesh Kashyap (19), a native of Uttar Pradesh -- both alleged shooters - and "co-conspirator Pravin Lonkar from Pune. Police are 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 is also probing various angles, including a possible contract killing, business or political rivalry or threat over a slum rehabilitation project, officials said.
(With inputs from PTI)
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