Bollywood star Aamir Khan, who had to face the ire of the Bharatiya Janata Party and the Congress workers in Gujarat when he had joined the protest against Narmada Dam last month, has slammed the Narendra Modi government for its alleged failure to control violence in Vadodara recently.
During an interactive interview to the BBC Asian Network's new Hindi/Urdu show, Khan also criticised US president George Bush for his Iraq policy.
'I think it is (Vadodara incident) very sad and what happened in Gujarat a few years ago was also equally unfortunate. It's a shame that the administration is not able to control the situation there and it is resulting in deaths of innocent people,' according to a BBC transcript of the interview.
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'It doesn't matter which religion these victims belong to. The bottom line is they are all human beings. It seems to me that the law and order machinery or the administration is simply not capable of controlling the situation," Khan said, responding to a query from a fan.
To a query on Iraq, the Bollywood star said, "I think what Bush is doing is absolutely wrong. In my opinion, what people in Iraq want should be decided by themselves and not some outside forces. The US troops had invaded Iraq saying Saddam Hussein possessed the weapons of mass destruction, but we all know that it wasn't true."
Khan strongly advocated close co-operation between Indian and Pakistani artistes and said he can consider acting in a Pakistani movie if the offer is right.
"There is lot of talents both in India and Pakistan. I think the talents of both these two countries should come together and entertain the world audience. If the right offer and opportunity come my way, I will love to do a movie in Pakistan," Khan said.
Khan had last month surprised the protestors against the Narmada Dam under the leadership of Medha Patkar when he suddenly joined them at Jantar Mantar in New Delhi to lend his support to their cause.
The move, however, evoked sharp reaction from workers of both BJP and Congress in Gujarat who stalled the screening of his latest film Rang De Basanti in the state in protest against his siding with Narmada Bachao Andolan.
