Salman case: Bishnois demand an apology from Maharashtra CM for “defaming” the community

Following the Bishnoi gang’s targeting of Bollywood star Salman Khan’s Bandra residence a few days ago, Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde is facing criticism from the outraged Bishnoi community.

On social media, the community has responded to CM Shinde and voiced displeasure over his alleged comments to “eliminate” the (Bishnoi) criminals. They have also promised to shield the actor and his family from any further attacks.

“Anyone who jeopardizes the Bishnoi community’s existence ought to apologize to us. An X campaign that was started yesterday had over 16,000 views, likes, forwards, and comments, with the message, “Eknath Shinde Tender an Apology.”

Scattered over northern and north-western India, the Bishnois are a Hindu group that adores the natural world. Since the 1998 blackbuck poaching incident, they have opposed Salman Khan.

On Tuesday, Khans met Shinde in the foyer of Galaxy Apartments, which faces the Arabian Sea. The actor was then shown to his spacious first-floor home, where he had unrestricted access to the family.

Following some time spent with Khans, the chief minister came out to reassure the press that, in contrast to certain rumors, “there is no gang (war) in Mumbai.”

He said that the mafia had no place in Mumbai under the MahaYuti administration and that the state government and police were in charge of safeguarding Salman Khan’s family.

“We are with Salman Khan and his family, I have promised them. To ensure that no one dares to do the same atrocity in Mumbai again, we will destroy this Bishnoi gang led by Lawrence. Salman Khan’s safety is our responsibility, CM Shinde said.

On April 14, two unidentified attackers fired at least five shots into Salman Khan’s house before escaping quickly on a motorbike and via a number of different escape routes.

The pair—later identified as 24-year-old Vicky Gupta and 23-year-old Sagar Pal—fled to Gujarat, hiding in the town of Bhuj in the Kachchh district, which borders Pakistan.

They were apprehended in a combined operation by the Gujarat and Mumbai Police, solving the case in less than 36 hours with the help of tech intelligence and local field sources.

The gunmen were transported to Mumbai on Tuesday, when they appeared in court before a magistrate, who remanded them in police custody until April 25.

During the accused’s questioning, it was discovered, among other things, that the Khan family, who also own the expansive rural estate Arpita Farms, planned the shoot-out from an apartment that acted as a base camp in Panvel, Navi Mumbai.

Additionally, Gupta and Pal said that they dumped the weapons into a few waterways in south Gujarat. The accused described how they were told to fire twelve rounds in order to intimidate the actor’s family, who has been at odds with the Bishnoi community for more than twenty-five years.

Salman Khan was warned to regard this as “the first and final warning” by Anmol Bishnoi, the brother of the incarcerated criminal Lawrence Bishnoi, in a social media message that was made simultaneously. Bollywood, which has seen several occurrences similar to this one in the past, shuddered.

Although security has been stepped up at Salman Khan’s Panvel (Raigad) farmland and Mumbai residence, the government, the governing Shiv Sena, or the Khan family have not yet responded officially to the Bishnoi social media campaign.