Mumbai crime branch seeks court nod to probe death threats to NCP’s Zeeshan Siddique and sister Arshia

Mumbai: The city crime branch’s Anti-Extortion Cell (AEC) has approached the metropolitan magistrate court seeking permission to investigate two non-cognisable offences registered after NCP’s Zeeshan Ziauddin Siddique and his sister Arshia Siddique allegedly received death threats through social media messages and calls from an international number.

As the offences are non-cognisable, police had sought the court’s permission under Section 174(2) of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS), 2023, to conduct an investigation. Section 174(2) BNSS states that no police officer shall investigate a non-cognisable case without the order of a magistrate who has the power to try the case or commit it for trial. An officer said the court has reportedly granted permission to police to investigate the matter, subject to following the prescribed procedure.

Sources said police are likely to register an FIR soon. AEC is taking the help of cyber experts to trace the threat sender.

According to the police, the two complaints (NCs) were registered at Bandra Police Station under Sections 351 and 351(3) of the BNS, 2023, against an unknown person using an international number. During the preliminary inquiries, the threat message senders used a private VPN to send audio messages.