Siddique murder: Police recover pistol, 3 bullets from arrested accused's rented home

Mumbai: Police have recovered a pistol and three bullets from the rented house of Ram Kanoujia, one of the accused arrested for the murder of NCP leader and former Maharashtra minister Baba Siddique in Mumbai, an official said on Friday.

Kanoujia was staying in the rented home in the Palaspe area of Panvel town in Raigad district, on Mumbai's outskirts, for the last one year, he said.

The 43-year-old, arrested last week by the Mumbai police, was part of the group that allegedly provided firearms and logistical support to the shooters in the Siddique murder case, according to police.

Siddique (66), a three-time MLA and former state minister, was shot dead by three gunmen on October 12 in Mumbai's Bandra area. So far, 14 persons, including two shooters, have been arrested from different places in connection with the high-profile murder case.

During interrogation, it came to light that there were more weapons with the accused persons. Following this, a crime branch team raided Kanoujia's rented residence and recovered a pistol and three bullets, said the official.

The crime branch extracted data from mobile phones of accused persons, including Gurnail Singh and Dharmaraj Kashyap, in which they found photographs of firearms, he said.

Police then interrogated the arrested accused and based on information provided by them, they conducted raids at various places, including Pune, he said.

Meanwhile, police on Thursday recorded the statement of the late politician's MLA-son Zeeshan Siddique as part its investigation into the case, the official added.

The former minister was attacked near his son's office.