Bishnoi gang’s attacks on film stars fuel concerns over Mumbai underworld ambitions

CHANDIGARH: The firing attempt on Bollywood actor Tiger Shroff, followed by a purported warning from the Lawrence Bishnoi gang claiming responsibility and advising him against working with Salman Khan, has renewed concerns about the syndicate’s attempts to expand its influence into Mumbai.

The gang has repeatedly targeted personalities from the Bollywood and Punjabi film industries, including Salman Khan, AP Dhillon, Gippy Grewal, Kapil Sharma and Parmish Verma. Its activities have drawn comparisons with the Mumbai underworld once dominated by Dawood Ibrahim.

Lodged in Sabarmati Central Jail in Gujarat, Lawrence Bishnoi has spent nearly a decade in custody, including earlier periods of incarceration. However, his syndicate, aided by a network of associates and his younger brother Anmol Bishnoi, who is lodged in Tihar Jail, has expanded its footprint across Punjab, Haryana, Rajasthan, Delhi and Mumbai.

Investigators have linked the syndicate to the May 2022 murder of Punjabi singer Shubhdeep Singh Sidhu, popularly known as Sidhu Moose Wala, and the October 2024 murder of former Maharashtra minister Baba Siddique. The gang has also been linked to threats against Salman Khan and the firing outside the residence of actor Disha Patani’s parents in Bareilly, Uttar Pradesh. The FBI has identified the gang as being behind the June 2023 killing of Sikh separatist leader Hardeep Singh Nijjar in Canada.

Salman Khan has repeatedly received threats from the gang. The threats were linked to his alleged involvement in the blackbuck case arising from the shooting of Hum Saath-Saath Hain in Jodhpur in 1998. The blackbuck is considered sacred by the Bishnoi community.

On September 12 last year, motorcycle-borne assailants allegedly opened fire outside the Bareilly residence of Disha Patani’s parents. Police linked the incident to Goldy Brar and Rohit Godara, associates of the Bishnoi gang, who reportedly claimed responsibility in a social media post.

On February 1 this year, two rounds were fired outside filmmaker Rohit Shetty’s house at Shetty Tower in Juhu, Mumbai. Police linked the incident to the Bishnoi gang. Later that month, Ranveer Singh’s social media manager received a threatening WhatsApp message demanding crores of rupees. Singh received another warning asking him and Shetty to ‘fall in line’ or face targeting. The voice notes were traced to Harry Boxer, alias Harman Sandhu, an alleged Bishnoi associate. A lookout circular was issued against him. Actor Ayush Sharma also received threatening calls and messages from a gang member that month.

Kapil Sharma’s café in Canada was targeted in multiple firing incidents. Associates of Bishnoi claimed responsibility for one of the shootings, citing Sharma’s invitation to Salman Khan to appear on Netflix’s The Great Indian Kapil Show. In a subsequent attack, gunmen opened fire from a vehicle. In May this year, the gang also targeted Sharma’s Chai Sutta Bar and issued a warning on social media, asking him to ‘get in line’.

In 2024, an associate of Bishnoi claimed responsibility on social media for firing 14 rounds and setting a fire outside Punjabi singer AP Dhillon’s house in the United Kingdom. The attack was linked to Dhillon’s collaboration with Salman Khan in the music video Old Money. Last year, an Indian national in the UK on a student visa who filmed the shooting pleaded guilty and was sentenced to six years in prison. His deportation was ordered this year, while another co-suspect reportedly remains at large.

In 2023, unidentified gunmen opened fire outside the Canadian residence of Punjabi actor and singer Gippy Grewal. The Bishnoi gang subsequently claimed responsibility on social media, citing Grewal’s association with Salman Khan. Four bullets were fired at a Lamborghini parked outside the house.

On May 12 this year, unidentified assailants fired shots outside the home of Gurpartap Singh Kang, manager of singer Diljit Dosanjh, in Gonder village in Haryana’s Karnal district. Two empty cartridges were recovered at the scene. Haryana Police said no formal complaint had been filed by Kang or his family and that the matter was under investigation.

The Bishnoi gang later claimed responsibility in a social media post attributed to Tyson Bishnoi, Aarzoo Bishnoi and Hari Boxer, calling it the “third warning” to Dosanjh and his managers, Sonali Kang and Gurpartap Singh Kang. The post cited alleged misconduct by a Dosanjh employee involving women during an Australia tour and denied that the attack was motivated by extortion.

In 2018, Punjabi singer Parmish Verma was shot in the thigh by unidentified assailants in Mohali. Gang member Dilpreet Singh claimed responsibility on Facebook. Sampat Nehra, an associate of the Lawrence Bishnoi gang, also claimed credit for the shooting.

Intelligence sources believe Bishnoi sought to expand his network into Mumbai as the influence of the Dawood Ibrahim-led underworld waned. Security agencies view the alleged recruitment of young operatives from Punjab as part of the syndicate’s broader strategy.

With the gang now purportedly claiming responsibility for the attack on Tiger Shroff, attention has again turned to its reported ambition to establish influence over Mumbai’s underworld, intelligence sources said.