Himanta Biswa Sarma hits out at Indian Express over article on Shah Rukh Khan’s phone call

Over the past couple of weeks there has been a raging controversy over the song Besharam Rang in Pathaan. Deepika Padukone is seen in a saffron bikini and romancing Khan in the song

New Delhi, Jan 23: Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma has been in the news following the call he received from actor, Shah Rukh Khan at 2 am.

Sarma has now pulled up the Indian Express for taking a dig at him for addressing Shah Rukh Khan as 'shri.' The actor had called Sarma at 2 am ahead of the release of his film, Pathaan and the Assam CM had tweeted about the same. The call was made after reports said that there were protests against the release of the film in Assam.

Dear @IndianExpress

That 'Shri' reflects dignity of my office.I have not called anyone but it is the actor who called me and introduced himself. My assurance on law & order only reflects my constitutional duty. There is nothing to take dig at. https://t.co/bkPzrDPcqc

— Himanta Biswa Sarma (@himantabiswa) January 22, 2023

In a tweet, Sarma while hitting out at the Indian Express article said, Dear Indian Express. That 'Shri' reflects the dignity of my office. I have not called anyone, but it is the actor who called me and introduced himself. My assurance on law and order only reflects my Constitutional duty. There is nothing to take a dig at, he also said.

The article spoke about how Sarma tweeted and addressed Khan as Shri and the Opposition leaders had pointed out how he had said 24 hours prior that he is not aware of Shah Rukh Khan.

Sarma while addressing a press conference on Saturday said that if someone files a case in a police station, they would act immediately. I do not know what Pathaan-Wathaan is. I have not heard about it. I have not seen it and I do not have time for this, he also said. Who is Shah Rukh Khan and why should we worry about it. We have so many Shah Rukh Khans here. Dr Bezbaruah, an Assamese film will be released and we might as well worry about that. Those who have made the film have not said anything and I take everyone's phone calls. Why should we worry and Shah Rukh Khan would have called if there was a problem,If he calls, let us see what the issue is, Sarma said on Saturday.

According to reports, members of the Bajrang Dal entered Narengi, Guwahati and tore posters of the film Pathaan. They also raised slogans against the film. This is not the first time that there have been protests against the film.

Following this Khan called Sarma and expressed concerns over the protests. Sarma on his part assured that the law and order would be maintained. Soon after Sarma tweeted about the development, the Opposition took a dig at him for addressing Khan as Shri.

The movie ran in trouble due to a song called Besharam Rang. In this song, actor Deepika Padukone is seen wearing a saffron bikini while romancing Khan on screen. Many persons pointed out that the son hurts religious sentiments.