'Shah Rukh Khan ne raada kar diya': Former ACP revisits Wankhede spat for which Bollywood actor got 5 years ban

Shah Rukh Khan’s infamous 2012 spat at Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai (AFP/File Photo)

The Indian Premier League (IPL) has witnessed several controversies since its inception in 2008. Shah Rukh Khan, who co-owns the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) franchise, found himself entangled in one over a decade ago, and it continues to be talked about. The incident took place during the 2012 edition, for which the Bollywood actor was also handed a five-year ban from entering the Wankhede Stadium.

Shah Rukh then had got into an altercation with a security guard and MCA officials after an IPL encounter between the Kolkata Knight Riders and Mumbai Indians.

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The incident was revisited by former ACP Iqbal Shaikh, who then was in charge of the area. “It was more of a miscommunication involving Shah Rukh Khan and Mumbai Cricket Association (MCA) officials. I was the divisional ACP of the area where Wankhede Stadium falls, which is why I was present there. When I reached the main gate, an MCA colleague informed me that Shah Rukh ne raada kar diya (Shah Rukh Khan has created a scene). By then, the match had ended, most people had left, and even a few floodlights had been switched off," Shaikh said on a podcast available on Subhojit Ghosh’s YouTube channel.

He added that the actor was playing with children in one corner and a security guard intervened, which he claimed to have "upset" the actor. “Shah Rukh Khan and some children with him were playing on one side. A security guard objected and blew a whistle, which upset him. There was some exchange of words, and then MCA officials also intervened. The argument became heated, and the atmosphere was worsening when I stepped in… I immediately escorted Shah Rukh out of the stadium to prevent the situation from escalating further. I told him directly, ‘Sir, please step outside.’ Otherwise, things could have worsened unnecessarily,” Shaikh added.

The visuals of the incident showed Shahrukh engaged in heated argument with a security guard and other officials. The actor was accused of trying to walk on to the field of play after the match. The MCA officials also alleged that he was drunk and abused them. A complaint was lodged against the actor at the Marine Drive police station.

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Later during his appearance on India TV show Aap Ki Adalat, Shah Rukh discussed the episode in length. “I was very angry and upset… I told him, these are our kids and we are taking them. I just said this. There was a person there who said a word which I, as a Delhi person, felt like it was an abusive word. Even though the same word in Marathi is also rude. Thoda sa religious, galat tha woh (It was religious, it was wrong). I then lost my cool and I went to hit him,” he, as quoted by Hindustan Times, had said.

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