The detention of actor Shah Rukh Khan for about two hours by immigration officials at a United States airport has resulted in considerable public outrage in India. It is important to separate the emotional chaff from the dispassionate grain when dealing with this issue. Inflamed hyper-nationalistic reaction — reflected in retributory calls for similar treatment meted out to visiting U.S. celebrities – has no place in any level-headed discussion. At the same time, Washington's attempt to clear the air by issuing a qualified apology falls far short of addressing why such “travel-related issues” keep cropping up intermittently. This is the second time that Mr. Khan has been detained at an American airport because of his name. And an expression of regret if any “inconvenience” was caused is a hopelessly inadequate way of dealing with the mortification of being held up and questioned if the reason for doing so is based on a suspicion that someone is a terrorist or on some watch list. New Delhi's strong message, that the “mechanical” routine of detention and apology is no longer acceptable, is most apposite.
The U.S. Embassy has pointed out that tens and thousands of Muslims travel to and from the United States every day without being delayed or detained — a fact it has employed to deny that there is racial profiling. But the germane point is: how many of them are? In the wake of the Shah Rukh Khan incident, other Bollywood figures who share his surname have complained of being detained. Director Kabir Khan has said he has been detained three times; actor Irfan Khan has revealed he has been held up at least four times for two to three hours. This issue is not about celebrities alone and it would seem reasonable to assume a fair number of ordinary Muslim men and women have undergone similar or worse experiences with U.S. immigration authorities since 9/11. Rather than draw attention to the existence of a mechanism by which Indian travellers, who ostensibly risk being questioned because of their names, can alert the U.S. Embassy about their status, surely the solution to the problem — which on occasion has assumed diplomatic dimensions — is to introduce a smarter system that does not red flag people simply because of their names. The fact that the late Senator Edward Kennedy was questioned five times in one month at American airports some years ago because his name showed up on the government's secret “no fly list” should have convinced Washington how flawed the existing procedures are.
A correction was made to this Editorial.
Keywords: Shah Rukh Khan detention, U.S. airport, U.S. immigration, Shah Rukh Khan, New York airport, SRK airport detention, Yale University
Mr. Gallatin's comments reflect the lack of logic behind the entire procedure. While
it is true that the US or any nation for that matter has the right to screen travellers
for potential terrorists, the whole point is that you do want to catch the terrorists and not normal people.
While I do not like special treatment for VIPs, it is a fact that there is such a thing, and even first-class passengers get special treatment passing through immigration and security when in fact they would be the ideal terrorists, sitting right behind the pilot.
As for VIPs, they are easily recognizable and surely the US immigration knows that SRK is not a terrorist, especially since this is not the first time they have held him up. The only reason to detain him might be if he were carrying objectionable or dangerous material. Kamal Hassan has also suffered such mistreatment. So, ordinary Muslims get stuck while terrorists likely will use fake names and passports.
Recently a 65 year old lady was detained at a US airport and asked to stand still inside a small circle and patted down inch by inch. This process took over an hour. The reason? She had a knee replacement surgery and the metal detectors sounded when she walked through them. Though she had papers from a hospital in India explaining the surgery, the security staff refused to look at them. It seems this plight of hip and knee replacement patients is quite common in US airports. Our Govt. never takes up such cases but bats for Bollywood heroes probably because they fund political parties.
i ask US govt to collect tax for india..form vips..so that they could
pay tax on time..fed up with stardom.they act in movie they inspire
us.thats true if they cant wait in a long queue because of stardom let
them stay in home.there are too may indians especially in gulf regions
missing their flights delay flights detained in airport for 12 hrs and
above.my name is not khan.
Those who respond to this column are two kinds.One on the side that
hates anything Muslims and Islam and on the other arguing the case on
its merit.This is sad.There is no point in trying to reason out with
bigots.
As long as the DHS is not discriminating against muslims and names like Khan,
SRK has no business to complain and whine. Nor has DHS treated him with
intentional disrespect. And his attitude during the address at Yale against the DHS was also not in good taste. If he was trying humourous lines, they were pathetic.
What would have won points for him, is if SRK had been gracious and respectful of US laws. But, the SRK is just another Bollywood, what better can one expect other than Bollywood antics.
I feel that the Indian media should be concentrating more on Indian scenario , rather than pointing a finger at US for detaining a super rich film actor at an airport of a country ,that is more bothered about it's citizens' security ,than India. Not " The Hindu " of all papers....we expect more standard from you.
There is something to be learnt from systems that work well. We in India, have to learn that all jobs should be done impartially and there should be no favor or bias in handling people of different standings. If we follow such a straight-forward transparent system and provide protection to those following it, we could bring in place accountability starting with various professions and help eliminate any favoritism. Why should acting profession be any different from an IT engineer or a doctor or a lawyer or a construction worker or a maid.
Apparently Ms Nirupama Rao said that "there was concern across India over
the incident since Khan is an internationally renowned personality". If it is a not so internationally renowned personalities, the country couldn't care
less.
Now, SRK should try to channel his energy (and the outrage of Indians all over the world) to disgust for the US, and refuse to visit that nation ever again.
Or, the people of India could try to forget the blasphemy and make an effort to move on with their lives.
Remember, time heals all wounds.
Shahrukh Khan is an actor, not a dignitary. In the US, no one is more
above the law, & Shahrukh is not the first person to be frisked,
questioned or detained - the only difference being that he is a
celebrity we worship & others were not. Famous actor Alec Baldwin was kicked off an American Airlines flight in December because he refused to turn off his cell phone. He did not throw a tantrum, thumb his nose at the airline or cry "discrimination" or "ill treatment". Like the gentleman he is, he was not looking for cheap publicity.
Let us look what the state government website says "A visa does not guarantee entry into the U.S. A visa allows a foreign citizen to travel to the U.S. port-of-entry, and the Department of Homeland Security U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) immigration inspector authorizes or denies admission to the United States".
Shahrukh khan was not denied entry - he could have been. The again, if this is a pattern, how about stay home among his worshipers?
Happy to see that vast majority of Indians are open minded and not blindly accepting what is being fed to them by these so called media .The article has also tried to beat the same tune .No VIP should get away with that .It might be true that muslims are being checked more thoroughly than the others but i do believe ultimately US has every right to do what it thinks is right and in the interest of its Citizens .
In India, we flout the laws, rules and regulations with impunity. That
kind of thing can not happen in the US without facing dire
consequences. They don't want another 9/11 to happen in their land and
they are very determined about it. Because it is only the Islamic
followers are indulging in terrorist activities and the US is in their
cross wires, any one with a muslim name entering the US has to undergo
some special procedure in their security check. No one, not even their
president can stop it. If all are 'Khans' and all the 'Khans' want to
enter the US, all of them will definitely have a special reception in
the hands of the immigration officials. It would be better if India
does not get rattled over it and make foolish protests that carry no
weight there. If S.R.K is sore about his detention for a few hours,
let him not go the US. He can't have the cake and eat it too.
There is nothing wrong in verifying the credentials of an inbound tourist at a POE (Port of Entry), BUT Ex-Presidents of Countries, Well Known Celebrities......Come on give me a break
To those who are justifying the US border guards' actions by saying that
US did not had any 9/11 type attacks due to these security arrangements
at the border. It is public and official that the 9/11 attacks were not
carried out from outside rather it was done within US and using domestic
planes. It pathetic that people get so blind so easily just because
Muslims are being targeted.
Regard less of religion, U.S has a right to protect there people so they
have to right to stop any one. sharuk khan's is a good actor i really
enjoy his films and acting, but he is not prime minister or President of
India so why cannot he wait 2hrs and support them then making big issue
!! Indian Govt will not open mouth when it comes to hunger strike over
Lokpal Bill by a social activist Anna Hazare!!!
Well said,we are all Khans! But, an Airport Security official does not know who each Khan is! He has been given a job to do and the US Government is still deeply suspicious of Islamic terrorists. Therefore, he does not have the same dicretionary powers as an Official in India has. The inconvenience and annoyance of all good Muslims being subjected to this is understandable. But, it only takes one bad one to slip through and cause havoc
VIPs are not god, they are general human like us and they have human feelings.recently a film star cought with drug.some ppl were crushed by drunked film star (VIP).so many accidents are happened by VIPs.
Shah Rukh Khan is not Mahatma Gandhi to be given this Govt level support. There are 100's of super-stars in India. Rajnikant's fans in chennai and Kamal Hassan's fans in some parts of interior tamilnadu, all cannot be treated in USA as Diplomatic VVIPs.
In USA everyone is treated equally, unlike India when a film star arrives, they are whisked bypassing lines and directly to their car. This is an open affront on security procedures.
I salute USA's enforcement of security with the utmost importance
Shame on this editorial coloumn. See the comments. By writing such editorial your paper's rating defenitely will come down.
Being an Indian, I truely respect the security policies of US Government and following it promptly.We are talking so much and raising our eye brows because the victim is a bollywood icon. This is a very light issue and shown large by the media and papers for their TRP ratings. Indians are good enough to distinguish between whats right and correct.So much exaggeration on this one is not required.
The thing here is not about Sharukh Khan being detained, but being
detained for hours because of the surname. The US Officials are
answerable to their conduct. What is the reason for he being detained
for so long? Is it not a violation of Human Rights? I really expect
Shahrukh to file a petition seeking an explanation.
we need to understand that the guys in homeland security are just doing
there jobs at least they are making sky safer in USA. I know racial
profiling is bad or say worst but this is there way of dealing with the
issue and if you have a problem then stay the hell out of states. I
think i kind of admire there work as not a single attack happen in USA
can we promise that in india.. no we can not. so please do not make it a
national issue as guys in homeland security do not give a s**t about
what some newspaper in india thinks
I do not know, why our media and government are making such an issue out of
this detention of SRK by US Intelligence. What kind and extent of security checks
US should have is their worry. The ground reality is, after that dreaded "September
11", there has not been any major terror related incident in US. Can we say the
same thing in our country after the "Mumbai attacks", where rules are bent for
individuals ? Is anyone suggesting that SRK by virtue of being a superstar, is
entitled to bypass security checks in India ? The security staff in US only follow
what they are mandated to do. However,it would have been a different matter, if
SRK had any diplomatic status.
Though I am an Indian i support US on this, For any Govt Welfare and Security of the Citizens is paramount.US is doing good in this way.They are following strict process, not for hurting Mr Khan, But keeping their citizens safe .These are the policies/process which kept them safe after 9/11.US doesnt profiles only Muslims. There is an algorithm which is written for profiling on names (muslim) and names of previously accused or back listed people names and wanted for criminal behaviour, who can hurt them .Names like "Balaji", "Shivaji" , Not an muslim name, But the algorithm fetches this name as "JI" is present in the end which is usually used by Muslims.Indian Govt should have not fight for Khans detainment.Its not an national insult if he is detained for 2 hours.US govt cannot take a risk of allowing another 9/11 .Indian govt should also make the policies Strict not just for US celebrities coming to India , but in general.
It's my opinion security is important to the respective nation. No one must interfere with other nation's security policies. In Saudi Arabia people who land at any international airport are subject to iris eye test and finger prints. this procedure will take at leat 1 hour. In India any internatinal airports, Saudi Arabian Airlines Air Marshalls taking security checks at the entry of the aircraft for the safety of passengers and aircraft as well. I dont think SRK's detention at US airport is big issue.
It's my opinion security is important to the respective nation. No one must interfere with other nation's security policies. In Saudi Arabia people who land at any international airport are subject to iris eye test and finger prints. this procedure will take at leat 1 hour. In India any internatinal airports, Saudi Arabian Airlines Air Marshalls taking security checks at the entry of the aircraft for the safety of passengers and aircraft as well. I dont think SRK's detention at US airport is big issue.
i think both US & INDIA are the culprits here. US for red flagging someone just on the basis of names and India for making this issue as matter of national shame and forgetting VIP culture is not respected in US and if at all INDIA wants to raise the issue it should be for every indian need not be for only celebrities and VIPs.why should SHAHRUKH get a special treatment? India should remember this is not done purposefully and targetted to disgrace Indians only as one of the US senator himself was detained five times on airport...this is US policy they do not compromise with security.India should rather learn something from US , and this is the reason why there is noterrorist attack in US after 9/11 and why india is public garden for terrorists.
i think both US & INDIA are the culprits here. US for red flagging someone just on the basis of names and India for making this issue as matter of national shame and forgetting VIP culture is not respected in US and if at all INDIA wants to raise the issue it should be for every indian need not be for only celebrities and VIPs.why should SHAHRUKH get a special treatment? India should remember this is not done purposefully and targetted to disgrace Indians only as one of the US senator himself was detained five times on airport...this is US policy they do not compromise with security.India should rather learn something from US , and this is the reason why there is noterrorist attack in US after 9/11 and why india is public garden for terrorists.
I don't understand why people are favouring the US here? It's been the
policy of the US to detain people based on their religion. Govt of India
has done right thing by taking such a strong stand.
Its surprising to see 'The Hindu' take such a stand of supporting Indian Government's reaction. US has every right to protect its citizens, in the best way possible. Instead of criticizing US policies, Indian government should learn, from US, of how to protect its citizens. 26/11 happened and we are still searching to make this country safe.
By virtue of being a jew, if someone gets profiled, by virtue of being a hindu if someone gets profiled, then there is a problem. Excellent editorial again.
This has reference to your editorial "We are all Khans" published in The Hindu on 16/04/2012. I am forced to write this letter with intention to bring the fact to light about Indian immigration officials act to Indian Muslims . A particular number of Muslims people, who are going to work in Gulf countries while return to India, are suspected as terrorist by the Indian immigration officials at air port. Is it right the Indian immigration officials act with own country people of Indian Muslims?
It because of this stringent security policies there is no successful
terror attack on U.S. land since 9/11. India should follow the same
rather complaining about it.
What Shahrukh said about the incident is very interesting. Whenever my
stardom climbs to my head, I make a trip to US to get down, as a humbled
human being.
The insinuation meted out to Sharukh in U.S soil could hardly be justified the authorities who use to run with a hare and also with a hound on each hand. The goblin of 26/11 still haunts as seen in such acts of high uncivility. True,we react to such indecency as and when it crops up. When will Washington get rid of the allergy towards the muslim nomenclature is not known. In a way,those in the media glare alone is believed to carry the emotions those end up with retribution by the state. Did we ever have a prick of such insult being swallowed by crores of Indians in our own soil who are cursed socially,culturally, financially and above all communally?
If any Indian feel insulted and unjust - why to go to US? If common Indian travels US for sake of employment or better life(some says) it is understandable, but why Shahrukh needs to travel to US? What is his compulsion to go to US? The fact remains these money mongers won't care for their self-respect and for India's too.
My freinds above spoken very good thing about a lot of things such as U.S security at the airports, U.S rules and regulations...etc. But one thing I want to comment is 'Rules & Regulations' must be equally adhered by everyone..... If the U.S immigration officials want to detain people for enquiry purpose it should be done equally for all. Not for the ones who are detained by their name.
See the track record of US after 9/11, it's zilch! Now see the number of bomb blast in different cities after Mumbai, it's surprisingly high! It seems we are still sleeping.... Who are we to question US security protocol? SRK was detained 2 hours at Airport, so what? Prepare to submit to the laws of the land otherwise, don't even think about going to that land!
Indian former president Abdul Kalam, South India Film super stars Mammootty, Kamal Hasan(Hassan Muslim Name), Sharuk khan 2 times...... They are heroes and dignitaries. So News channels project them. But we don't know about other passenger muslims because of they are not dignitaries.
US government need to update their security software systems to come out of the hapless redundancy in errors .Its not about Khans and Mohammed ,rather the picture as a whole for foreigners is grey.
So I'll suggest them to rather be efficient and stop asking for aplogies .
Tell us, how will you explain detention/quizzing/searching of George Fernandez(Christian), Praful Patel(a Hindu), Meera Shankar(a Hindu) and Hardeep Puri (a Sikh). They are just vigilant, they don't want their 9/11 to repeat.
Certainly , there is no need to make a hue and cry if a celeberity is subject to rigorous security check. But doing this repeatedly to a celeberity, with a certain surname, makes one suspect that it could be case of profiling. This phenemenon is nothing new in the American Society - the African Americans were constantly targeted by the U.S. Police - ostensibly , to make the cities and streets safe ; but , underlying this was a clear racial profiling. Similar thing is happening to Muslims - not just in the U.S. but in many other Western Nations as well.
We are not at all khans.US is good in terms of getting to some method or so to find some sampling of peoples profiles so that they may avoid a threat.If their procedure was not to check khans, will all others be like sharukh? there could be definitely some Osama khan and plundering the nation.If the congress govt wants to appease one community let them do in their country,but taking our interests to international forum,and expecting the whole world to appease only one community does not make sense and it will let down our reputation worldwide.
I am reminded of an incident that I was witness to in Delhi Airport Terminal 1 (domestic terminal) about 5 yrs ago. A white man made a big fuss about the security guards and threw hysterical fits and our people, afraid of the white man's anger allowed him. When I confronted that man and said that security procedures should be followed, he just shouted at me and abused me. Our security personell just shrugged their shoulders and allowed him. What a pity that our people can not learn that as some of the readers above have averred that national security comes first. Let us stop making fuss about this incident. We live in violent times and we have to bear with these.
What the wrong with that procedure? US has the right to impose some strict laws that helps to make sure the safety of passengers, traveling through their country. Why shouldn't we concern about this kind of incident that happened to an ordinary Indian citizen. Unlike politicians, film actors are not representing our country, and they were there for there business interest. Even this kind of interest we wouldn't find from our central government when twice our former defense minister George Fernandez has got insulted from US authorities in his formal visit.
"We treat a disease, we win...we lose. We treat a person I guarantee we win no matter what the outcome."-Robin Williams in the movie "Patch Adams".
We can take caution...extreme caution, but we should save ourselves from becoming paranoid. When some one makes the same mistake over and over again then I guess something is VERY wrong. And one cannot be serious about detaining "*every* person for 2 hours" for "safety".
This is a prime example of a phobic lives that people will have to live if the intelligence agencies are goofing things up.
Not only Shah Rukh Khan, I have also been a victim of my name. I have been asked by many whether I am related to to the late Sri Lankan terrorist Velupillai Prabhakaran. Most often, the question came out of intellectual curiosity. But at times it also came out of genuine suspicion – like when I get interrogated at U.S. airports on my returns from foreign travels. I live in the U.S.
There were also times when I was one of those whose baggage would be randomly checked by security officials. Though slightly offended, I would tell them, "I want you to know that I am not offended. If my name aroused suspicion, you are not to blame.” Every time I said it, they were so moved. Some even gave me a hug.
Yes, “the existing procedures” are “flawed.” But let’s not forget that thanks to them, there have been no major terrorist attacks in the U.S. since 9/11. I hope Shah Rukh Khan, like me, wouldn't mind a little inconvenience and embarrassment. And let not India be overly critical of the U.S.
U.S officials were doing their job. If it required to detain someone to ensure security then it must be done. Other countries who are victims of terrorist attacks should learn from the US . There has not been a single terror attack since 9-11 in the US and this is because of strict security measures followed by the US.
The US has every right to stop anyone and interrogate for how much ever time they want. I am saddened that our Govt. has gone to such extent in this matter. SRK is an actor for India and for USA he is just another visitor.
Instead of criticizing We should learn something from USA about security of their citizens.We should stop worrying about Bollywood heroes. This whole affair may be publicity stunt. Our innocent citizens are killed in hundreds in India and nobody cares to see whether security systems work or not. our cheif ministers keep playing politics with important matter like NCTC. Let us discuss these issues.
Nice comment covering almost all angles of analysis. But, I assume
such practice as an integral attempt to segregate the immigrants on
religious backgrounds at the entrance point of US soil and mindful
them of how to conduct inside it during their stay and how also US law
is complicated to cross over. The authority concerned may term and
justify this as procedure of the system established. If opposite
nation establishes and enacts the same, diplomatic criticisms will surface and pressure will rise, if necessary, to the extend of
changing the political regime and institutions for not respecting
individual dignity, freedom and global citizenship and so on....
[The fact that the late Senator Edward Kennedy was questioned five times in one month at American airports some years ago because his name showed up on the government's secret “no fly list” should have convinced Washington how flawed the existing procedures are.]
This is a rather stunning confirmation of the American claim that nothing extraordinary happened to Shah Rukh Khan, and that he was not detained because of his race. We should also reflect that it's very easy to point out flaws without pointing to concrete alternatives. The American security system has kept the country, including innumerable foreigners who live and travel there, safe from catastrophic terrorist attacks since Nine Eleven in spite of the tremendous hatred, determination, and ingenuity of its enemies. If any other country in the world faces a threat of the same magnitude from the same enemies, it is India. Perhaps the Americans should adopt the Indian system?
Why this row? We didn't even allow Rushdie for a video conference. Huh!
If only India had the guts to put this security drama on, for the visiting American dignitaries, would they realize the issue.
Leave alone the Khans and other regular people, but what about Ex President of India or External Affairs ministry personnel ? Surely there are protocols that are violated. If USA doesn't want to respect the protocols, providing Security as the cover, then surely India can do that as well. As long as Indian Government is unable to or unwilling to do the same, there is no use to any number of editorials crying foul.
I cannot understand why The Hindu is also singing the same story. Come on, U.S. is a vigilant country which after the 9/11 attacks takes extreme precaution to prevent another attack. Any slackness will be disastrous. And the poor security guy at the hundreds of airport in the U.S. need not be expected to know that Mr. X is a celebrity in India. Hero worship is not practised in the U.S.
We are all not Khans. We go through normal security channels in airport; We stand in queue in Government offices; We are stopped by the police to yield to VIP traffic; We go through US immigration following whatever laws of their land. Instead of admiring the independence of even the lowest level officials and ruthless enforcement of laws in the USA, you're finding fault with the policies of US that has kept them safe since 9/11. We don't know that US profiles only Muslims. We don't know what logic they use to single out travelers to check further. But we do know that they haven't had a single successful terrorist attack since 9/11. Contrast that with India. The Indian Government shamelessly goes to fight for Khan - because it considers a couple of hours of wait at an airport to be a great national insult - when innumerable detainees are withering in Indian jails without trial. The Government as usual is oblivious to real problems and squanders its time and resources on trivialities.
Even Sri. Abdul Kalam was a victim
The issue highlights India's VIP culture in which VIPs believe that are not subject to rules that apply to ordinary persons. In fact, the swift Indian Govt action on the matter was only because Mr. Khan happened to be a Bollywood super hero. Had it been any other person, nobody in Govt would have been bothered.
The article has made an attempt to be even-handed. During the previous
incident involving SRK, the media went hammer and tongs at the U.S
Immigration -- a senior journalist from Delhi even exhorted that the
U.S must be taught manners by Indians. Misplaced nationalistic over-
kill! When the U.S authorities clarified that SRK's questioning
resulted out of his sponsor's dubious records of cheating on taxes,
our media went on a silence mode.It would be interesting to
investigate whether the U.S has outsourced its immigration services to
private operators manned with staff of mediocre intelligence.
I'm with the U.S. on this one. If *every* person has to be detained for 2 hours at the airport to ensure security of the Americans, then that is what America should do. To the U.S. government the welfare and security of its citizens is paramount - nothing else is as important. That is why we (as Americans) elect our government, to take care of our welfare and security. Not to make it easy for others to come to the U.S. We would like to make foreigners' trips to the U.S. as pleasant as possible, but NOT by sacrificing our security interest one iota. If the foreigners have to suffer some indignity at the borders, we're sorry for their incovenience, but we're NOT sorry that we take care of our security. We'll do it again if we have to.
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