Mumbai: Has Pakistan added Bollywood Actor Salman Khan’s name to the list under the 4th Schedule of the Anti-Terrorism Act of 1997?
If it has then Islamabad has declared Salman – who has a substantial fan following in Pakistan – a potential terrorist or a terrorist sympathiser, in the least.
According to the reports, this came after the actor’s recent statement in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, in which he separated Balochistan from Pakistan.
Salman was speaking at the Joy Forum 2025 event in Riyadh. He was on the dais with Shah Rukh Khan and Aamir Khan, talking about how popular Indian movies are in the Middle East.
“There are people from Balochistan, Afghanistan, even from Pakistan. Everyone is working here,” he said.
This was bound to hit a raw nerve in Pakistan as the government there is facing major trouble in the southwestern province of Balochistan. Hundreds of Pakistani troops have been killed there by Baloch Liberation Army (BLA) over the last few years.
Though Balochistan is the largest province in Pakistan with considerable mineral reserves and the Gwadar port, the population there claims they have been neglected by the government. Intellectuals, journalists, students and members of the civil society in the province have been killed by militia close to the Pakistan Army. Many have disappeared.
The BLA has now declared Independence and warned the government against carrying out any deal with a foreign nation about natural reserves in Balochistan. Pakistan recently offered the US access to rare earth minerals in that province. The Gwadar port is also crucial in the scheme of things for the China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC).
No sooner had the video clip been uploaded on social media that speculation started about Salman’s true intentions. While some said it was just an accidental “slip of the tongue”, others said that people shouldn’t over-analyse it or expect actors to be geopolitical experts. However, the Pakistani government reportedly saw it as an attack on its country’s sovereignty.
The Balochs were very happy though with a leader saying that the comment brought joy to six crore (60 million) Baloch citizens and helps send a message to the world that Balochistan should be recognised as a separate nation.
So far, Salman Khan and his team have not made any statement to clarify the remark.
Being put on this list under the 4th Schedule means the person is placed under heavy surveillance and their movements are restricted. This move also means Pakistan could take legal action against Salman.
