Tiger Shroff firing: Shooters planned to flee to Nepal after attack, say police
Police say the accused received Rs 50,000 as advance for the attack and were planning to flee to Nepal; investigators are probing the alleged Bishnoi gang link
A Rapido driver, a labourer and a minor are among the three accused arrested for allegedly opening fire at Bollywood actor Tiger Shroff’s car as he left a football club in Mumbai’s Juhu area on Sunday night, police said. The trio were intercepted at Rajasthan’s Kota railway station while travelling by train towards Delhi. They were planning to flee to Nepal, according to the police.
Police sources said the three had received an advance of Rs 50,000 collectively to carry out the attack. Investigators are questioning them to ascertain their individual roles and establish whether all three were directly involved in the shooting.
The arrests were made on Monday (October 19). Kota SP Tejaswani Gautam told ANI that two of the accused were from Haryana and one from Bihar. The Lawrence Bishnoi gang has reportedly claimed responsibility for the attack, but investigators are still probing the claim. An NDTV report, quoting sources, said the arrested accused were members of the Bishnoi gang.
‘Shooters conducted recce’
“The Kota City Police team apprehended them from a train,” Gautam said. According to news agency ANI, investigating agencies suspect that the attackers were trained shooters and had traced the actor’s movements before attacking him on Sunday.
These shooters reportedly knew that Tiger visited the Juhu football ground on Sundays and had attacked him as he was leaving the ground in his car.
Also read: Actor Tiger Shroff escapes firing attempt in Mumbai's Juhu; driver injured
The shooters also had pre-planned an escape route after the attack – along SV Road through Vile Parle and Andheri. After the attack, they reportedly left their motorcycle near Andheri West railway station and boarded the train towards Borivali.
ANI, quoting preliminary investigation, said the shooters had later crossed over to Gujarat to evade law enforcement agencies.
On Sunday evening, unidentified assailants opened fire at Shroff's car in Mumbai's Juhu area. The actor escaped unhurt, while his driver and another person were injured.
'Who is Bishnoi to the BJP?'
Maharashtra Congress president Harshwardhan Sapkal on Monday challenged Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis to bring jailed gangster Lawrence Bishnoi to Mumbai for interrogation regarding the series of attacks in the city.
Sapkal, in a statement, claimed that the firing on actor Tiger Shroff had once again exposed the law-and-order situation in Maharashtra. "Who is Bishnoi to the BJP? The Bishnoi gang cannot operate from the Ahmedabad jail without the government's blessings," the Congress leader alleged.
Instead of making hollow announcements, Fadnavis should show the courage to take Bishnoi into custody, bring him to Mumbai, interrogate him and file a case against him, he said. He further cited the murder of former state minister Baba Siddique, along with earlier firing incidents at the residences of actor Salman Khan and filmmaker Rohit Shetty, noting that the Bishnoi gang's involvement had surfaced in each case.
"Why has this mafia member not been interrogated so far? Who has tied the hands of the Maharashtra Police?" the Congress leader asked.
Citing an August 2023 Union Home Ministry order issued under Section 268 of the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC), he claimed it prevented police from taking Bishnoi outside Gujarat for questioning, and demanded that the state government immediately urge the Centre to revoke the restriction.
CM Fadnavis' assurance
Earlier on Monday, Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis said the Mumbai Police would track down those involved in the firing incident targeting actor Tiger, and their handlers, asserting that such acts would not be tolerated.
The police have obtained important leads about the identification of the accused and will arrest them soon, Fadnavis told reporters in Nagpur.
Also read: Tiger Shroff firing: 15 teams to track down assailants, Fadnavis assures strict action
The accused were operating from outside Maharashtra, possibly from abroad, he said, adding that the police would coordinate with other states and seek assistance from central agencies to track them down.
"We will also track down their handlers, who hide elsewhere and send instructions from there," he had assured.
The Lawrence Bishnoi gang has claimed responsibility for the attack, according to a viral social media post, but police have yet to verify its authenticity.
The Mumbai Police have registered a case of attempt to murder.