The alleged Lawrence Bishnoi gang has claimed responsibility for the attack on actor Tiger Shroff in Mumbai last evening, while identifying Anil Pandit as the person who conveyed its message about the attempted killing.
Pandit, who is suspected to be operating from the United States, allegedly said Shroff had been warned against working with actor Salman Khan, who has long been a target of the gang. The warning was reportedly ignored.
The claim has brought renewed attention to Pandit, a 32-year-old from a village in Haryana’s Panipat, whose name has appeared in several cases involving firing and extortion in Haryana, Delhi and Pune. Some of the shooters linked to these incidents allegedly used foreign-made weapons.
Pandit left India for Canada in 2023 using a passport. After he came in contact with Randeep Malik, a gangster associated with the Lawrence Bishnoi gang, he reportedly travelled to California and became involved with the group.
While based overseas, Pandit is alleged to have used a network of shooters in India over the past six months. Several firing incidents connected to extortion were reported in different parts of Panipat. The Haryana Police and the Special Task Force arrested shooters in these cases, prompting investigations into possible links between criminal networks operating in Haryana and gangs based abroad.
Delhi gym shooting case
Pandit’s name also emerged during the investigation into a shooting at a gym in Delhi’s Paschim Vihar that was frequented by singer Guru Randhawa. The Delhi Police Crime Branch and Special Cell arrested four shooters allegedly connected to Pandit.
The accused allegedly remained in contact with Pandit through the Signal app and were found carrying foreign-made weapons.
Pune jewellery store firing
About 15 days after the Delhi incident, a jewellery store in Pune came under fire. Investigators again found alleged links to Pandit, as well as to Shubham Lonkar, who is described as an aide of Lawrence Bishnoi.
The three alleged shooters in the Pune case were reported to be from Hanumangarh in Rajasthan and were accused of travelling to Pune specifically to carry out the attack. The Maharashtra Police arrested them.
Pandit’s name has also been associated with the firing at the car of singer Diler Kharakiya in Haryana, where extortion was suspected to be the motive.
In another operation in Sonipat, the Delhi Police Crime Branch and the Haryana Special Task Force engaged a suspected Lawrence Bishnoi gang shooter, Rohit Dahiya, who was injured during the action.
Other names linked to the gang
The individuals whose names have emerged in connection with the Lawrence Bishnoi gang include Randeep Malik, Harry Boxer, Harman Sandhu, Anil Pandit, Tyson Bishnoi and Shubham Lonkar.
Harmanveer Singh, also known as Harman Sandhu, has been linked to cases involving the gang and is alleged to have connections with the drug-trafficking network operated by criminal Ravinder Singh Dhanda. Sandhu was born in Punjab in 1994 and is also known as Hari Gautam.
US agencies have identified Sandhu’s alleged role in a conspiracy involving drug trafficking and the shipment of narcotics to other countries. In June this year, the US District Court for the Central District of California issued an arrest warrant against him on charges related to a conspiracy to sell drugs internationally. He was later arrested by the California Highway Patrol in the United States.
In the same month, the United States announced Operation Hard Ball in Los Angeles, targeting three gangs: Lawrence Bishnoi, Jaggu Bhagwanpuria and Ravinder Dhanda.
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