“Don’t wear a helmet… smoke a cigarette while firing to appear fearless… you will create history” — these were the instructions given allegedly by Anmol Bishnoi, the younger brother of gangster Lawrence Bishnoi to the bike-borne shooters, a day before they fired at Bollywood actor Salman Khan’s house in Bandra on April 14. These details are mentioned in the chargesheet filed by the Mumbai police in the firing case, which also includes Khan’s statement, where he has said that he believes that Lawrence Bishnoi and his gang carried out the firing at his residence to kill him and his family members.
The chargesheet includes a transcript of an audio conversation on Signal app between wanted accused Anmol and Vickykumar Gupta, who was riding the bike on the day of the firing.
“Waha pe goliya bade soch samajh kar aur saari jagah tatatat chalani hai. Chahe apne ko aadha minit lage toh bhi dikkat nahi hai, ek minit lage ya dedh minit lage, koi dikkat nahi hai, aur aise chalani hai ki bhai dar rahe ho… us waqt cigarette peete peete hi chalana taki camera mey aaye… ki aise lage ki bekhauf chalate hai ji, matlab apne ko ye cheez dikhana hai ki inko koi nahi hai (You need to fire carefully and quickly. Do not worry even if it takes half a minute or more than a minute. You should fire to scare Bhai… You should fire while smoking a cigarette so that CCTV cameras capture you that way… it will seem that you are fearless, we have to show that),” the transcript states.
The chargesheet claims that Anmol was in touch with Gupta and Sagar Pal, who allegedly fired the shots, through the Signal app. It also claims that on one occasion the shooters spoke to Lawrence, who is behind bars in a jail in Gujarat. Lawrence allegedly told them that they should be ready for the firing and that they will be successful.
The transcripts claim that Anmol also told Gupta that if they manage to do the work, they will create history and there will be widespread reporting about it in newspapers and the media. The Mumbai police claim that the conspiracy of firing at Khan’s home was hatched with the intention of getting a stronghold and supremacy in Mumbai, with the aim of getting pecuniary and other advantage for his gang.
The Mumbai police have filed a chargesheet against six persons, including Gupta and Pal, while naming Lawrence, who is lodged in Sabarmati jail, Anmol, who is believed to be in the US or Canada, and Rawtaram Swami, who is believed to be in the UK, as wanted accused. Among the statements recorded by the police are that of actor Khan and his brother Arbaaz. Khan has said in his statement that on April 14, he was sleeping at home when he heard the cracker-like sound.
“I was sleeping when I heard a cracker-like sound. Around 4.55 am, the police bodyguard informed me that two people on a bike had fired from a weapon at the balcony of our first-floor house. There had been previous attempts to hurt me and my family. I have learnt from social media that Lawrence Bishnoi and gang have taken responsibility for the attack. So, I believe that it is the Lawrence Bishnoi gang who carried out the firing at my balcony,” Khan’s statement says.
About the previous attempts, Khan’s statement refers to a 2022 incident where his father, writer Salim Khan, received a threat letter during his morning walk, an email received by Khan and an attempt by two men who tried to enter the Panvel farmhouse of the actor in 2023. He had alerted his family to remain careful, after these threats, the statement says.
Khan has also mentioned how the family often uses the balcony where the shooters aimed at, including during parties or to wave at fans who gathered below the residence. Khan has also said that he would go to the balcony between work, late in the night or in the early hours. The police have booked the men under charges including attempt to murder of the Indian Penal Code.
The chargesheet also states that the planning for the firing was in the works since 2023 when Anmol had reached out to Pal and Gupta about some ‘big work’, which was to be done in Mumbai. Gupta’s confession part of the chargesheet mentions how they were told to also target anybody who tries to stop them. After the firing, the duo left and managed to reach Gujarat and remained in touch with Anmol through video call, before their arrest.
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