Noted lyricist Javed Akhtar gets death threat

Mumbai (ANI): Bollywood lyricist and poet Javed Akhtar on Saturday received a death threat through an E-Mail about which he has intimated to the local police.

Incidently, Akhtar has received the threat after he criticized the decree of an Islamic seminary asking Muslim women not to work and reportedly terming the cleric issuing the diktat as "insane".

A couple of days ago, Darul Uloom Deoband issued a fatwa (religious decree) saying taking up of jobs by Muslim women is illegitimate and asked them not to work with men.

After informing the Additional Commissioner of Police, Akhtar said: "I gave him the whole detail. I showed him the e-mail, the threatening e-mail, he went through it, read it and he said that there is no problem, police will do the needful and will give proper protection."

Mumbai Police, meanwhile, has provided him temporary security pending a review of the situation.

"Mr. Javed Akhtar came to me, met me. He explained to me certain situation and certain e-mail, which was threatening in nature. We have asked him to lodge a formal complaint, which he is going to do. Temporarily we have provided security to him. We are going to review the security and take necessarily action," said Amitabh Gupta, Additional Commissioner of Police.

Akhtar has been well-known for his liberal views and been at the received end of clerics's ire on various issues. (ANI)