Mumbai, Sep 21 (PTI) A court here on Monday refused bail to an accused in the Baba Siddique murder case, stating there was prima facie material connecting him to the principal accused and persons alleged to be members of an organised crime syndicate.
Former Maharashtra minister Siddique (66) was shot dead by three assailants outside his son Zeeshan’s office in Mumbai’s Bandra (East) area on the night of October 12, 2024.
The bail application of 27-year-old Aakash Sriwastav was rejected by special MCOCA judge Mahesh Jadhav.
Sriwastav was apprehended in Bahraich in Uttar Pradesh, on November 10, 2024, along with principal accused Shivkumar Gautam and others while allegedly attempting to flee across the Nepal border.
Special public prosecutor Mahesh More opposed the bail plea, relying on confessional statements recorded under Section 18 of Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act (MCOCA).
The prosecution said Sriwastav attended conspiracy meetings, assisted the syndicate, and provided shelter to Gautam after the shooting.
The defence, however, argued that Sriwastav was innocent, had no nexus with the principal accused, and received no financial gain.
It also challenged the legality of his arrest and noted that the confessional statements of the co-accused had been retracted.
The court ruled that, at the bail stage, retracted confessions cannot be completely excluded and must be viewed alongside corroborating evidence, including witness statements, call detail records, and the circumstances of the accused’s arrest near the international border.
“The material on record, prima facie, connects him with the principal accused and the persons alleged to be members of the organised crime syndicate,” the court said.
The judge concluded that the defence failed to satisfy the stringent requirements of Section 21(4) of MCOCA, which mandates the court to find reasonable grounds that an applicant is not guilty before granting bail.
As many as 26 arrested people have been chargesheeted in the case. Anmol Bishnoi, brother of jailed gangster Lawrence Bishnoi, and two others are wanted accused in the case.
All the accused are facing trial under Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act (MCOCA) and are currently in judicial custody. PTI AVI BNM
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