NRI fans of Shahrukh Khan feel sorry about treatment meted out to him

CHICAGO - NRI fans of Shah Rukh Khan here have said that they felt bad about the treatment meted out to the Bollywood superstar by immigrations officials at Newark International Airport.

“It is unfortunate the incident that happened with Shah Rukh Khan at the airport where he was detained for two hours. The homeland security wants to take measures for people like Americans but when you talk about big names like Shah Rukh Khan that’s quite high priority and usually there is somebody to usher them in. It is kind of unacceptable that it took two hours for the homeland security to figure out who Shah Rukh Khan was,” said Hema Virmani, a fan of the star.

Shah Rukh was enroute to Chicago for a parade to mark the Indian Independence Day on Saturday when he was pulled aside for questioning at Newark Airport in New Jersey on Friday.

A U.S. consul official in India told a television channel that they were inquiring into the matter.

As news of Khan’s detention broke on Indian television channels, fans and actors began posting angry comments on the Internet.

Minister for Information and Broadcasting Ambika Soni told a television station that while she could not say if Shah Rukh Khan had been detained “on religious grounds, there have been too many instances like these in the U.S. concerning Indians”.

Last month, U.S-based carrier Continental Airlines apologised to former Indian President A.P.J. Abdul Kalam for frisking him at New Delhi Airport. (ANI)