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Tiger Shroff firing case: 11 held as Congress demands Fadnavis's resignation over threats to film industry
Mumbai Police have arrested 11 people from four states in the attempt-to-murder case over the firing on Tiger Shroff's car in Juhu on 18 October. The Congress says threats to actors show a failure of law and order and has demanded Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis's resignation.
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Mumbai Police have arrested 11 people from four states in the case over the firing on the car of actor Tiger Shroff in Juhu, and the Congress has used the case to demand the resignation of Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, who also holds the Home portfolio. The Maharashtra Congress chief, Harshwardhan Sapkal, said on Saturday that organised crime and threats to film personalities showed a failure of law and order.
What happened in Juhu
On the evening of 18 October, at least two men fired five or six rounds at Shroff's car in Juhu and fled on a motorcycle. Shroff escaped relatively unhurt, but his driver and a bystander were injured. The motorcycle was found abandoned in Andheri. Mumbai Police registered a case of attempt to murder and other offences under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita and the Arms Act, and the case was handed to the Crime Branch.
Chief Minister Fadnavis said soon afterwards that nobody involved in the attack would be spared. He said the police had leads, that specific individuals had been identified, and that the masterminds and handlers, including any who operate from other states or from abroad, would be pursued.
Eleven people have been held from Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh and Haryana. The latest, the 11th accused, is Pranjal Thakran, 22, from Sonipat in Haryana, who was arrested by the Crime Branch in Indore. Police suspect that he gave logistical, financial or operational help to the shooters and to the main conspirators. Two firearms that were allegedly used in the attack have been recovered in Surat and sent for forensic and ballistic tests, which will check them against the shell casings found at the scene.
Police have named a man called Anil Pandit as a wanted accused. He is described as an associate of the Lawrence Bishnoi gang, which is believed to run its operations from the United States. A social media post claiming responsibility for the attack was made in his name. Police have not independently verified the claim, and a claim of this kind made online is not proof that the person made it or that the gang was behind the attack. Mumbai Police have linked the Bishnoi gang to earlier cases in the city, including the firing outside actor Salman Khan's home in April 2024 and the killing of the politician Baba Siddique in October 2024, which is why the claim is being taken seriously even before it is verified.
The Congress attack on the government
Sapkal, speaking at Tilak Bhavan in Mumbai, said that security fears and organised crime were making the Hindi film industry think of moving out of the city. He pointed to the All India Cine Workers Association, which, he said, had to approach the Union Home Minister for security, and called that a sign of poor law and order. He cited threats against the actor Salman Khan and the filmmaker Rohit Shetty as well, without giving details.
He blamed Fadnavis directly and said the ruling Mahayuti government had lost its right to govern if it could not control crime. He also alleged political patronage behind the rise of gangs, and he linked the issue to Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath's remarks about bringing the film industry to his state. The state government has not answered the new allegations in the reports available so far, and Fadnavis has earlier accused the opposition of misusing the police when it was in power.
The ballistic reports on the two recovered weapons will show whether they match the shots fired in Juhu, and the questioning of those held should show how the shooters were found and paid. The wanted accused and the gang's claim are the harder part of the case, since the police have to prove who gave the order. The motorcycle left in Andheri and the weapons found in Surat matter for a reason beyond the evidence itself: they show how a small group of local helpers, a transport route and a supply of firearms can be put together across several states within days. Police will want to know who paid for the operation and who gave the weapons. For the film industry, which has faced threats in the past, the larger question is whether the arrests lead to protection that is visible, and not only to more statements.
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