Zeenews Bureau
New Delhi: The External Affairs Ministry on Saturday took up the Bollywood actor Shah Rukh Khan`s detention issue with the US government. Speaking on the issue India’s Foreign Secretary Nirupama Rao said, “US has assured us that they will ascertain facts in the mater.”
Earlier in the day the US Embassy here which said it was ascertaining details about the incident involving the "global icon" who was welcome to America.
"The matter was taken up with the US Embassy," External Affairs Ministry spokesman Vishnu Prakash said soon after the reports about detention of the actor reached here.
Consul General of India in New York is in touch with Khan, Prakash added.
US Ambassador to India Timothy J Roemer issued a separate statement, saying "We are trying to ascertain the facts of the case -- to understand what took place."
Describing Shahrukh Khan as a "global icon", Roemer said "he is a very welcome guest in the United States. Many Americans love his films."
Prakash said the Consulate General of India in New York got in touch with Khan immediately upon learning that he had been taken for secondary questioning at Newark airport.
Khan said that he was all right. The Consulate offered him any assistance that he may require, the MEA spokesman said.
Meanwhile, Information and Broadcasting Minister Ambika Soni has suggested that India should do a `tit-for-tat` towards Americans.
"I am of the opinion that the way we are frisked, for example I too was frisked, we should also do the same to them," Soni said.
Many examples like this have come from the US where frisking is done and "beyond permissible limits", she said.
"I don`t understand. In the name of religion, frisking can be done for anyone like this," an angry Soni said.
This was not the first time that a prominent Indian was subjected to security checks in the US or by an American enterprise.
George Fernandes, who was then Defence Minister, was forced by US security officials to remove his shirt and shoes and made to undergo check at an airport in Washington when he was there on an official visit a few years ago.
The most recent case was that of former president A P J Abdul Kalam, who was frisked by officials of Contintental Airlines at the international airport here before boarding a Newark-bound flight. This had led to a furore in India.
Actor Kamal Hasan had to undergo security checking at a US airport in 2002, soon after 9/11, with some officials becoming suspicious about him while Malayalam superstar Mammootty too was detained at the JFK airport recently because of his middle name `Ismail Mohammed`.
Actor Irrfan Khan also faced a similar problem last year in US despite his global fame following the success of `Slumdog Millionaire`.
Kabir Khan, Director of recent hit `New York` which portrays victimisation of Muslims in post 9/11, was detained thrice while actor Neil Nitin Mukesh had to undergo similar drills.
