New Delhi: Samajwadi Party leader Abul Azmi on Tuesday hit out at actor Salman Khan for attending the RSS 100th anniversary celebrations, claiming that the Bollywood star might have attended the event under pressure. He also alleged that actors lack the courage to refuse invitations extended by the ruling body.Speaking to reporters, the SP MLA said that as a public figure, Khan may not have the right to reject invitations associated with people in power. “I understand Salman Khan is an actor and he has to be respected in this country. If people from the ruling side say anything, I don’t think Salman Khan has the courage to say no. He must have gone there under pressure from the government,” Azmi said, hinting at coercion behind the actor’s appearance.
#watch Mumbai: Actor Salman Khan participated in RSS’s 2-day lecture series “100 Years of Sangh Journey”.
In response, Samajwadi Party leader Abu Asim Azmi said: “I understand that Salman Khan is an actor and he must be respected in this country. If people from the ruling party have any say… pic.twitter.com/27m9puWttP
— ANI_HindiNews (@AHindinews) February 11, 2026
Azmi made the remarks after Salman Khan attended a meeting RSS Mumbai Vyakhyanmala Saturday’s event, part of a two-day lecture series titled “One Hundred Years of the Sanger Journey: New Horizons.” The actor’s attendance at the event has since sparked a political debate, drawing reactions from leaders across party lines.Defend the Khan, Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde dismissed the controversy and urged political leaders not to politicize the issue. He said there was nothing unusual about the actors participating in the show, stressing that Khan, as an Indian citizen, had every right to participate in such events.“Whether Salman Khan has participated in RSS programs or not, why should this be questioned? Salman Khan is an Indian citizen. He follows Indian culture – Ganpati comes to his house and his entire family believes in these traditions. I don’t see anything wrong with that. In fact, it is absolutely correct,” Shinde said, adding that the matter should not be made unnecessarily political.
Video | Mumbai: On Bollywood actor Salman Khan’s participation in RSS events, Maharashtra Deputy Minister Eknath Shinde said, “Why is there any question whether Salman Khan has participated in RSS programs? Salman Khan is an Indian citizen. He follows Indian culture and Ganpati follows his… pic.twitter.com/TCCNdyS3n0
— Press Trust of India (@PTI_News) February 10, 2026
Maharashtra Minister Nitesh Rane also came out in support of the actor while taking a dig at Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray.
#watch | Mumbai: On MNS chief Raj Thackeray’s criticism of RSS 100th anniversary commemorations, Maharashtra minister Nitesh Rane said, “I was part of the programme. He never disrespected any language. Raj Thackeray got the wrong message…Salman Khan is more of a Hindu than Uddhav Thackeray… pic.twitter.com/ltHJjAHsbM
— ANI (@ANI) February 10, 2026
Raine claimed, “Salman Khan is more Hindu than Uddhav Thackeray. He has the guts to do RSS programmes.”
