Remark on rape: Salman’s reply irks central, state women’s panels

NEW DELHI/MUMBAI: Bollywood actor Salman Khan has not apologised for his rape analogy to describe his gruelling training for an upcoming film, the National Commission

NEW DELHI/MUMBAI: Bollywood actor Salman Khan has not apologised for his rape analogy to describe his gruelling training for an upcoming film, the National Commission for Women (NCW) said on Wednesday after getting his reply to a notice for his controversial remarks.

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The 50-year-old actor triggered outrage when he told an entertainment website on June 21 that the drill for Sultan, in which he plays an ageing wrestler, had left him feeling “like a raped woman”.

The NCW took cognizance of his comments and demanded a public apology. It called the remarks “reprehensible” while the hashtag #InsensitiveSalman trended on social media. For its part, the Maharashtra State Women’s Commission rejected Khan’s reply and summoned him to appear before it on July 7.

“Salman Khan’s legal counsel has written to us. All I can say after going through the letter is that it is not conciliatory. He (Salman) has not apologised. It’s a four- page, very legal-sounding explanation that he has given,” NCW chief Lalitha Kumaramangalam said. She said the panel’s legal officer is going through the actor’s reply.

“We will decide on what action to take based on the legal officer’s advice. But one thing is clear … we are taking the issue very seriously.”

Maharashtra State Women’s Commission chairperson Vijaya Rahatkar said: “We have concurrent powers just the way the NCW has. This matter can be heard at the state level too. Therefore, his version is invalid.” Khan had asked in a letter to the Maharashtra panel on June 28 not to take up the case as the matter was before the national commission.

NCW chairperson Kumaramangalam criticised “Bollywood activists” — referring to members of the film fraternity vocal on social issues — for being silent. “Such activists have a view on everything but strangely no one has come out in the open to condone what Salman said,” she said.

She called for deterrence in the form of stringent action to stop public figures from making derogatory comments about women. The actor’s father, Salim Khan, and brother Arbaaz Khan had come out in his defence, saying he didn’t mean to hurt anybody by his remarks.

Salman had told Spotboye.com: “It is like the most difficult thing... When I used to walk out of the ring, after the shoot, I used to feel like a raped woman. I couldn’t walk straight.”