The Kanjurmarg police on Saturday arrested a 23-year-old Pune resident in connection with the threatening text messages sent to Shiv Sena leader Sanjay Raut on Friday. The police said that the accused, who had invoked gangster Lawrence Bishnoi’s name, is alleged to have sent the string of messages under the influence of alcohol.

Raut, a Member of Parliament with the Rajya Sabha, had received several WhatsApp messages in Hindi between 9.15 pm and 9.30 pm on Friday, in which the sender referred to Raut as ‘Hindu virodhi’ and threatened to shoot him down with an AK 47 assault rifle, the way singer Sidhu Moosewala was killed, if he ever came to Delhi. The sender further claimed to be speaking on behalf of Bishnoi and swore to kill Raut as well as actor Salman Khan, who is already under threat from the gangster.