Threat letter, email, and firing outside house: Why has Salman Khan been on radar of gangsters?

What were the other threats received by the actor in the last few years?

In March 2023, the actor’s manager received a threat mail, following which an FIR was registered against jailed gangster Lawrence Bishnoi, Goldy Brar – a Canada-based gangster and close associate of Bishnoi – and one Mohit Garg. It referred to an interview given by Bishnoi from Tihar jail where he had threatened the actor.

An investigating personnel measures a bullet mark after a firing incident in front of actor Salman Khan’s residence in Bandra. (Express photo by Sankhadeep Banerjee)

The email from Mohit Garg’s ID said Brar wanted to talk to the actor. It referred to the interview given by Bishnoi in which the jailed gangster issued the death threat. The email said if the actor wanted to close the matter, he should talk to Brar “face to face.” The mail further threatened that while information was passed on this time around, the next time, there would be consequences.

Before that, in June 2022, a threat letter was kept at a spot on Bandra Bandstand where the actor’s father, Salim Khan, would walk. The threat letter claimed that the actor would meet the fate of singer Sidhu Moosewala, who was killed in May 2022, allegedly by the Bishnoi gang. An FIR was registered regarding that threat letter as well.

Further, during interrogation with the Punjab Police, a Bishnoi gang member said two men had conducted a recce along Salman Khan’s route to his Panvel farmhouse from Mumbai. He said the two men had taken a room on rent for a month for this purpose. The Mumbai police, however, could not corroborate this.

Why has the actor been on the radar of the Lawrence Bishnoi gang?

Bishnoi has in the past threatened and allegedly tried to attack Salman Khan due to his alleged involvement in the blackbuck killing case of 1998 while shooting the movie Hum Saath-Saath Hain in Rajasthan. Blackbucks are considered holy by the Bishnoi community; hence, Lawrence Bishnoi claimed he had been upset with the actor ever since.

Law enforcement agencies, however, said that like any gang, Bishnoi also targets high-profile people to stay in the news and ensure this scares victims to pay protection money.

Who is Lawrence Bishnoi?

Bishnoi, 31, is a Punjab-based gangster with several cases of murder and extortion against him. He became a more prominent name after the murder of Moosewala. Brar claimed responsibility for the murder and said he had planned the attack with Bishnoi, who was then in Tihar jail.

What security measures have been taken by the police?

Following the threats to Salman Khan, the Mumbai Police, in August 2022, issued the actor a firearm licence for self-protection. In November 2022, the Maharashtra government upgraded his security level to the Y plus category from the X category.

While X category security usually entails one gunman, Y has one gunman for mobile security and one (plus four on rotation) for static security. Y+ has two policemen (plus four on rotation) for mobile security and one (plus four on rotation) for residence security.