US indictment reveals Lawrence Bishnoi's decade-long plot to kill Salman Khan
The United States Department of Justice (DoJ) has indicted jailed gangster Lawrence Bishnoi, revealing that between 2022 and 2026, he announced his intention to murder 'S.K.,' a well-known Indian actor and television personality, to promote his criminal enterprise and instill public fear. Although the indictment uses initials, the reference is unmistakably to Bollywood star Salman Khan.
According to Mumbai Police investigations, the threat against Khan has been persistent and elaborate. At one point, Navi Mumbai Police reported that 60 to 70 people were tracking Khan's movements as part of a Rs 25 lakh plot to assassinate him near his Panvel farmhouse. Officers investigating the gang said the DoJ's language mirrors their own chargesheets, which describe the motive as an attempt to 'instil fear among people.'
Police believe that targeting Khan was a strategic move by the Bishnoi gang to gain a foothold in Mumbai's underworld extortion scene. An officer explained that gangs need to create fear to extort money, and targeting a high-profile figure like Khan ensures widespread publicity. The gang's ultimate goal, investigators say, is to use Khan's celebrity connections to expand their criminal network.
The origins of the dispute date back to 1998, when Khan allegedly shot a blackbuck during the filming of Hum Saath Saath Hain in Rajasthan. The Bishnoi community considers the blackbuck holy, and the incident led to an FIR against Khan. In 2018, a video surfaced showing a then-unknown Lawrence Bishnoi threatening to kill Khan in Jodhpur, a threat that was initially dismissed.
However, investigations into a 2024 firing outside Khan's residence revealed that the threat was serious. In 2018, Bishnoi sent an associate to conduct a recce of Khan's Bandra home. In June 2022, days after the murder of singer Sidhu Moosewala, a threat letter was left near Khan's father's walking spot, warning that Khan would meet a similar fate. The letter bore the initials 'LB' and 'GB,' believed to stand for Lawrence Bishnoi and his Canada-based associate Goldy Brar.
The Navi Mumbai Police uncovered the most elaborate plan: a Rs 25 lakh contract to kill Khan. Police have documented these details in multiple chargesheets, emphasizing the gang's systematic efforts to terrorize the actor and the public.
