Full security for SRK film: Maha
Feb. 4: Union home minister R.R. Patil on Thursday assured complete security for Shah Rukh Khan’s forthcoming film My Name Is Khan. He also accused the Shiv Sena of creating a controversy over a non-issue only to divert public attention from real issues with an eye on the municipal polls.
On Thursday night, the police began making preventive arrests of Shiv Sainiks. At the time of going to press 50 Sainiks had been taken into custody.
Mr Patil said, "Every multiplex that screens My Name Is Khan will be given full security to ensure that the screening is not disrupted and that the audience is not troubled. Strong action will be taken against anyone who tries to take the law in his own hands."
"They are doing it with an eye on the municipal elections in Mumbai and other cities. The Sena wants to divert focus from problems like the water crisis in Mumbai," the minister said.
The municipal elections referred to by the Maharashtra home minister will be held in 2012. Shah Rukh Khan is facing the Sena’s ire for saying that he favoured the inclusion of Pakistani players in the Indian Premier League. Last week, Sena men protested outside his Mumbai residence and raised slogans against him.
Meanwhile, Mr Patil also sent a letter to the state’s legal department asking for a legal opinion on the Sena mouthpiece Saamna concerning its "inflammatory" remarks. Mr Patil has sought the opinion of the advocate-general on whether legal action can be taken against Saamna.
While the Maharashtra government and state home minister have swung into action and promised to provide full protection for My Name Is Khan a week before its scheduled release, it was inactive when the release of the Marathi film Jhenda was stalled by supporters of Congress minister Narayan Rane only a month ago.
The producers of Jhenda were forced to postpone the release after Rane supporters led by his son Nitesh objected to a character in the film. They said the character resembled Mr Rane and portrayed him in a bad light. The movie was allowed to be released only after the name of the character and the dialect of his language was changed.
Chief minister Ashok Chavan had then said that protection would be provided to the film if the producers approached the government. No such pre-condition has been set for My Name Is Khan, the release of which has been under threat from the Shiv Sena.
Prasad Patil
Mumbai
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