Aamir stands by his comments on intolerance

Mumbai:  Two days after his statement sparked off a major controversy, actor Aamir Khan on Wednesday sought to stand by his statement on intolerance while clarifying that he and his wife, Kiran, have no intention of leaving the country.

On Monday, at a journalism awards function in New Delhi, the 50-year-old actor had said: “Kiran and I have lived all our life in India. For the first time, she said ‘should we move out of India’…She fears for her child, she fears about what the atmosphere around us will be.”

His comments led to a big controversy, splitting the political class and civil society with a section backing him and others ridiculing.

On Wednesday, Khan preferred to come out with a press statement, to put an end to the raging debate.

“First let me state



categorically that neither I, nor my wife Kiran, have any intention of leaving the country. We never did and nor would we like to in the future. Anyone implying the opposite has either not seen my interview or is deliberately trying to distort what I have said. India is my country, I love it, I feel fortunate for being born here, and this is where I am staying,” he said.

However, he said that he stands by what he has said in the interview and hit out at people who targeted him.

“To all those people who are calling me anti-national, I would like to say that I am proud to be Indian, and I do not need anyone’s permission nor endorsement for that. To all the people shouting obscenities at me for speaking my heart out, it saddens me to say you are only proving my point.”

Khan, at the same time, also thanked people for the support that he got. “To all the people who have stood by me, thank you.