Stepping up protests against the screening of Shah Rukh Khan-starrer My Name Is Khan, Shiv Sena activists today vandalised nine theatres in the eastern suburbs of Mumbai. The police arrested 54 Shiv Sainiks involved in the attacks on theatres in Mulund, Kanjurmarg and Ghatkopar and another 114 were rounded up as a preventive measure.
Karan Johar, director and co-producer of the film, met Mumbai Police Commissioner D Sivanandhan at his office this morning, seeking police protection from attacks. The police chief assured them that security would be provided at 63 theatres in the city where the movie is slated to be screened.
?I have given my promise to all exhibitors and distributors that they will screen the movie. We are standing by them and giving them complete security,? said Sivanandhan. ?We have asked for five companies of the State Reserve Police Force to be deployed in each region to support our deployment by Tuesday evening. The theatres where the attacks took place did not even have advance bookings open.?
The attacks began with Sena activists vandalising Huma Adlabs in Kanjurmarg where they tore the movie screen. The Sainiks entered the theatre as members of the audience, sat in a morning show of the film 3 Idiots and then vandalised the screen.
?They bought tickets and sat inside the theatre and tore a portion of the screen. As they were leaving the theatre, we arrested them. We have booked the offenders for rioting, vandalism and unlawful assembly,? said DCP (Zone 7) Rajkumar Vhatkar.
Mulund?s Mehul theatre, located near a Sena office branch, bore the brunt. ?The matinee show of a Marathi movie was in progress when around 15-20 protestors barged in and smashed window panes. They also entered the canteen and broke the furniture there,? said a theatre office-bearer.
The attack, he said, came as a surprise as the decision to screen the movie was pending.