Actors Ayesha Khan, Imran Khan, Huma Qureshi and Saqib Saleem have joined the nationwide youth protests.
Key Points
- Dhurandhar actress Ayesha Khan was detained by the Mumbai police on Wednesday while participating in a solidarity demonstration for NEET aspirants.
- Imran Khan joined a large student protest at Mumbai’s Shivaji Park condemning Monday’s police violence against students in New Delhi.
- The youth protests in New Delhi, Mumbai and other cities demand educational reforms and accountability following alleged NEET-UG exam irregularities.
Contrary to the oath of silence about the NEET exam paper leak taken by the Dhurandhar cast and crew (their proximity to the powers that be is no secret), actress and influencer Ayesha Khan, whose sizzling dance number in the film is still being talked about, joined the protestors and was detained by the Mumbai police on Wednesday, July 22, in Dadar, north central Mumbai.
Ayesha had arrived at the location to participate in a solidarity demonstration supporting the ongoing nationwide youth protests.
In a video that she posted on her Instagram page, Ayesha said, ‘I went to Dadar to show solidarity with the NEET aspirants. The gathering was a part of widespread CJP (Cockroach Janta Party) student protests. I had not yet begun protesting or chanting any slogans when the cops intervened.’
‘They first picked up my brother and his friends. When I questioned them, four to five female police officers forcibly dragged and pushed me into a van.’
Ayesha and her group were taken to the Worli police station, central Mumbai. Local authorities cited a lack of official permission for the gathering to justify the preventive detention.
Ayesha tells us what happened in this video:
Ayesha also posts a video about how she was dragged and pushed into a police van during the protests.
Imran Khan Joins the Movement
While Aamir Khan remains silent over the issue — even seemingly distancing himself, when he claimed his blockbuster 3 Idiots was not based on Sonam Wangchuk, the educationist who is fasting during the protests — his nephew actor Imran Khan joined the protest in Mumbai. Imran joined young people marching in the heavy rain at Shivaji Park in north central Mumbai.
Imran is one of the few film folk who have physically joined the protests. Siblings Huma Qureshi and Saqib Saleem visited the protest site in New Delhi’s Jantar Mantar on Wednesday night to extend their support to the movement.
Stars have poured their support on social media.
Naseeruddin Shah said he was ‘boiling with anger‘ while Salman Khan wrote a long touching post, extending his support online.
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Photograph curated by Manisha Kotian/Rediff