Shah Rukh Khan should have returned, says Shiv Sena

Mumbai, Aug 13: Superstar Shah Rukh Khan, who was detained at an American airport, should have displayed patriotic credentials and returned to India after another "insult" in the US, the Shiv Sena said here today.

Observing that the "tolerant actor" goes to the US repeatedly, the Sena said if he had decided to return, it would have been a slap on the face of the US. The Sena was reacting to Khan's detention at a US airport, the third time in seven years. The Bollywood actor was detained briefly at the Los Angeles International Airport yesterday.

"This has been a common occurrence with Shah Rukh at most big US airports. Still, this tolerant actor goes to the US repeatedly, only to get insulted," an editorial in Sena mouthpiece Saamana said.

"He should have returned, displaying patriotic credentials, and telling the US that 'I won't step into your country if you are going to insult me in this manner,' the Sena said. "Had he done so, it would have been a slap on the face for America. The US views every Muslim as a terrorist," the Sena said.

The Sena also suggested that the Khans should give direction to the youth of Kashmir which is witnessing rampage. "The Khans of Bollywood should take to Twitter to 'show direction' to misguided youth in Kashmir who are on a rampage," the Sena said.

The editorial also referred to last November's incident when Bollywood actor Aamir Khan said that his wife Kiran Rao wondered whether they should move out of India, as she feared for the safety of their children in a climate of "insecurity".

That was the time when the issue of "rising intolerance" in India was being hotly debated, and when several artists and authors returned government awards to protest "intolerance".