MUMBAI: The Foreigners Regional Registration Office (FRRO) has ordered actor Imran Khan to leave India by October 28 over his participation in protests, police said on Thursday.
Police linked the notice to his attendance at August Kranti Maidan on October 10. Demonstrators there demanded Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar’s resignation. Authorities allege that his participation breached laws governing foreign nationals.
Khan plans to challenge the directive in the Bombay High Court, Bar & Bench reported. Advocates Zulfiquar Memon, Parvez Memon and Chirag Naik of MZM Legal LLP represent him.
An American citizen, Khan holds an Overseas Citizen of India (OCI) card, which permits eligible foreign nationals of Indian origin to visit and stay in India. Cardholders cannot vote or contest elections.
According to government guidance, OCI status does not confer Indian citizenship. Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Kirit Somaiya lodged the complaint against Khan. He accused the actor of involvement in a conspiracy to spread anarchy in India.
Khan had explained his attendance to reporters as a Mumbai resident, rather than a representative of any organisation. “I’m here to see why freedom of movement is being restricted,” he said.
Police briefly detained him alongside other demonstrators. He later posted a photo from inside a police van on Instagram, which attracted more than two million likes.
Khan made his lead-acting debut in the 2008 romantic comedy “Jaane Tu… Ya Jaane Na”. His later films include “I Hate Luv Storys”, “Mere Brother Ki Dulhan” and “Delhi Belly”.
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He is returning to acting this year with Netflix’s “Adhure Hum Adhure Tum” after more than a decade-long break.
Cockroach Janta Party (CJP), the Gen Z-led movement behind the protest, has demanded electoral reforms over alleged vote fraud. India’s election commission denies those allegations.
Thousands joined demonstrations in Delhi, Mumbai and other cities. Opposition leaders, including Congress parliamentarian Rahul Gandhi, led a march from Connaught Place to the Supreme Court in Delhi on Monday.
Two CJP leaders were sent to jail for five days on Wednesday after their arrest for alleged trespassing at a Delhi protest site. CJP has called for another protest in Delhi on Friday evening.
(With additional input from BBC News and The Indian Express)
