Bollywood actor Saif Ali Khan landed in trouble in the early hours on Wednesday morning after a post mid-night scuffle with an NRI businessman at a luxury hotel in Colaba. And in anticipation of his arrest, a whole posse of cameramen landed up at the Colaba police station from noon. He finally landed up at the police station around 8.30 pm, leading to a veritable feeding frenzy among the media.
Earlier, Vinod Sawant, senior inspector of Colaba police station said, “Arrests will certainly be made and also the people present with Khan would be arrested.”
It is learned that the actor surrendered himself to the police before he could be arrested. Along with him, two others, Bilal Amrohi and Shakeel Ladak, were arrested and later all three were released on bail.
In the fracas at Wasabi, the upmarket Japanese restaurant inside the Taj Mahal Hotel, Iqbal Sharma, a South African businessman of Indian origin, was left with a broken nose. The incident, according to the complaint registered by Sharma with the Colaba police station, occurred just past midnight when Khan along with his girlfriend, actress Kareena Kapoor and some others were having dinner at the restaurant.
According to Sharma, the actor Khan and those accompanying him, including Bollywood personalities Bilal Amrohi and Shakeel Ladak, were talking loudly while seated at an adjacent table. When Sharma walked up to them and objected to their talking loudly, an argument ensued leading to a fracas during which the complainant was assaulted by Khan, leaving him with a bleeding and fractured nose, said police.
Assistant Commissioner of police (ACP) Iqbal Shaikh said, “The complainant went to G T Hospital following the incident and then reported the matter to the police at around 2.30 am. Khan's arrest is inevitable as it is a cognizable offence," Shaikh said.
Shaikh said a police team was dispatched to the actor's Bandra residence but he was not present there and his mobile phone was also switched off.
An FIR against Khan and his friends was registered under sections 325 (voluntarily causing grievous hurt) and 34 (acts done by several persons in furtherance of common intent) of IPC.