Mumbai, April 24: The Bombay High Court on Friday rejected the bail application of Akhilendra Pratap Singh, an accused in the murder case of former Maharashtra minister Baba Siddique.
Court denies bail relief
Justice RM Joshi refused to grant relief. The detailed order copy will be made available later. Singh had approached the HC after it was rejected by a special MCOCA court in July last year.
Details of the murder case
Siddique was shot dead by three assailants outside his son Zeeshan Siddique’s office in Bandra (East) on October 12, 2024.
Prosecution cites links with organised crime
The prosecution opposed the bail, arguing that the accused had close links with co-accused persons involved in the planning and execution of the murder. Relying on call data records, the State claimed that Singh was in touch with individuals associated with the organised Bishnoi gang syndicate, under which the offence has been booked under provisions of the Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act (MCOCA).
Public Prosecutor, along with advocates Pradip Gharat and Trivankumar Karnani for the victim’s family, submitted that the chargesheet contains sufficient material establishing a prima facie case against the accused, disentitling him from bail.
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Defence arguments rejected
On the other hand, defence counsel Satyavart Joshi argued that the sanction to invoke MCOCA was granted without proper application of mind and that there was no direct evidence linking the accused to the crime. He also pointed out that Sureshsingh has no prior criminal record.
The court, however, was not inclined to grant relief and rejected the bail plea.
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