Daijiworld Media Network – Mumbai
Mumbai, Oct 18: Bollywood actor Tiger Shroff escaped unhurt after three unidentified men riding a motorcycle allegedly opened fire in Mumbai’s Juhu area on Sunday evening, injuring his car driver. The actor was reportedly leaving a football ground when the attack took place.
Soon after the incident, an audio clip surfaced on social media in which a man identifying himself as Anil Pandit, claiming to be associated with the Lawrence Bishnoi gang, took responsibility for the attack along with another person named Harman Sandhu.
In the recording, Pandit claimed that Tiger Shroff had been warned but had failed to follow the group’s directions. He alleged that the actor was on their hit list because he was “not heeding our directions” and “was working with Salman Khan”.
The speaker went on to threaten members of the film industry who worked with Salman Khan or refused to align themselves with the gang, warning that they would be killed. He also demanded that Salman Khan apologise to Lawrence Bishnoi and the Bishnoi community, apparently referring to the actor’s alleged involvement in the 1998 blackbuck hunting case. The speaker warned that the gang would not spare anyone in Salman Khan’s family, including his pet dogs, if the demand was not met.
The authenticity of the audio clip and the alleged gang’s involvement in the shooting have not been independently established.
Although Tiger Shroff and Salman Khan have not appeared together in a full-length feature film, they share several professional connections. Salman reportedly helped pave the way for Tiger’s Bollywood debut by advising producer Sajid Nadiadwala to launch him. Tiger’s father, Jackie Shroff, has worked with Salman in several major films. The two actors have also shared public platforms and frequently expressed mutual admiration for each other’s fitness and dedication to action cinema.
Lawrence Bishnoi, who is lodged in a Gujarat jail, has repeatedly threatened to kill Salman Khan. In 2023, the National Investigation Agency (NIA) reportedly identified Salman as the top target among 10 people the jailed gangster allegedly planned to eliminate. The threats have been linked to the 1998 blackbuck hunting case, which Bishnoi has claimed offended the Bishnoi community, known for its reverence for wildlife.
The latest incident comes two years after former Maharashtra minister and Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) leader Baba Siddique was shot dead in Mumbai’s Bandra area on October 12, 2024. The Lawrence Bishnoi gang claimed responsibility for the killing, citing Siddique’s close friendship with Salman Khan.
Further details about Sunday’s shooting and the investigation are awaited.