Actor Salman Khan on Wednesday did not turn up before the Maharashtra State Commission for Women (MSCW) to explain his controversial rape analogy, and instead questioned the jurisdiction of the State panel when the matter was being heard by the National Commission for Women (NCW). Irked, the panel has issued a fresh summons to the actor to appear before the commission’s Bandra office on July 7.
Commission officials said they received a letter from Salman’s legal representative on June 28, which urged the panel to drop the case as the NCW was looking into it.
MSCW chief Vijaya Rahatkar called the reasoning baseless, saying that the State panel had concurrent powers and equal authority as the national commission to summon. “His remarks were offensive. We have started the proceedings and have summoned him again on July 7 with his lawyer,” Ms. Rahatkar told The Hindu .
When asked what steps the commission would take if Salman failed to turn up again on July 7, Ms. Rahatkar said, “That would be decided that day.” As per law, a State commission can summon a person thrice for a hearing after which it has the right to issue a warrant against the person.
Meanwhile, the actor has sent a separate emailed response to the NCW in New Delhi. NCW chairperson Lalitha Kumaramangalam told reporters that Salman was not apologetic in the reply sent through his lawyer and that the panel was now studying it. She, however, refused to reveal the contents of the letter.
Salman’s comparison of his exhaustion during the shooting of his film Sultan to a raped woman had sparked outrage on social media.
“When I used to walk out of the ring, after the shoot (of Sultan ), I used to feel like a raped woman. I couldn’t walk straight,” Salman had said. Though audio clips of the interview clearly showed that the actor had realised his mistake minutes later, and said it was not correct on his part to make such analogy, several women’s groups had found the remark offensive.
Calling the remark reprehensible, the NCW had issued a notice to Salman seeking an apology, and said that if his reply was not satisfactory, the commission would summon him in person.
