Former Maharashtra minister Baba Siddique was shot dead in his son's office in Mumbai

Baba Siddique, a former minister from Maharashtra and a member of the Ajit Pawar faction of the NCP, has died after he was shot at in Mumbai's Bandra.

Sources said three bullets were fired at Mr Siddique at the office of his son Zeeshan, the Bandra East MLA, around 9.30 pm on Saturday. Two people were taken into custody.

Mr Siddique was admitted to Lilavati Hospital and sources said at least one of the bullets hit him in the chest. News agency ANI quoted hospital authorities as saying he had died.

Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde said he had spoken to police and people at the hospital. “Two persons have been arrested, one from Uttar Pradesh and one from Haryana, while another is absconding. I have asked Mumbai Police to take strict action,” he said.

Mr Siddique, who was a three-time MLA from Bandra West, was associated with the Congress for 48 years and had left the party in February and joined Ajit Pawar's NCP. Zeeshan Siddique was expelled from the Congress in August.

The shooting occurred during Dussehra and came months before the assembly elections in Maharashtra, which are expected to take place later this year.

Expressing shock, NCP spokesperson Brijmohan Shrivastav told NDTV that Mr Siddique had not spoken of any threats.

Mr. Siddique was elected MP from Bandra West constituency in 1999, 2004 and 2009 and served as Minister of State for Food and Civil Supplies, Labor and FDA between 2004 and 2008.

The former MP was known not only for his political acumen, but also for throwing lavish parties. A cold war between superstars Shah Rukh Khan and Salman Khan was settled at an Iftaar party hosted by Mr Siddique in 2013.

Salman Khan and actor Sanjay Dutt have reached the hospital.

Law and order issues

Opposition party leaders expressed grief over Mr Siddique's death and also raised questions about law and order in Mumbai. They questioned how a politician with Y security could be publicly killed in an upscale area like Bandra.