Lawyer arrested for threatening Shah Rukh Khan remanded in police custody
A court in Mumbai on Thursday remanded a lawyer from Chhattisgarh, arrested on charges of threatening to kill Bollywood superstar Shah Rukh Khan, in police custody until November 18.
The accused, Faizan Khan, was arrested by Mumbai police on Tuesday in Raipur, Chhattisgarh, and brought to Mumbai after securing his transit remand from a local court in Raipur.
On Thursday, Khan was produced before a court in Bandra, where the police requested his remand for seven days to further investigate the case. The accused’s lawyers, Amit Mishra and Sunil Mishra, argued that Khan’s phone had been stolen before the alleged threat was made. They contended that the call made from his phone was part of a conspiracy against him, pointing to a previous complaint he had filed with the Mumbai police against Shah Rukh Khan. This complaint was related to a dialogue in the actor's 1994 movie Anjaam, which Khan found offensive due to its reference to deer hunting.
After hearing both sides, the court remanded Faizan Khan in police custody until November 18 for further investigation.
The case began on November 5 when the Bandra police station received a threatening phone call in which the caller demanded Rs 50 lakh and threatened to kill Shah Rukh Khan. The actor’s residence is located in Bandra. A case was subsequently filed against the unidentified caller under Sections 308(4) (extortion with threats of death or serious injury) and 351(3)(4) (criminal intimidation) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS).
The caller was later identified as Faizan Khan, who was traced to Raipur. Prior to his arrest, Khan had told reporters that his phone was stolen on November 2, and he had lodged a police complaint in that regard. He also explained that he had objected to a scene in Shah Rukh Khan’s movie due to his connection with the Bishnoi community, which is known for protecting deer as part of their religious beliefs. Khan, who hails from Rajasthan, said, “As a Muslim, if I say something derogatory about deer, it is condemnable. Therefore, I raised an objection.”
The threat to Shah Rukh Khan comes amid a series of similar threats targeting fellow actor Salman Khan, allegedly from the Lawrence Bishnoi gang.
