MUMBAI: The Mumbai Police has reduced security cover for 40 Bollywood celebrities including top actors Shah Rukh Khan and Aamir Khan.
Only actors Amitabh Bachchan and Dilip Kumar and singer Lata Mangeshkar will retain the police security they have had so far – it includes two armed constables and an escort vehicle with armed constables and a security-in-charge for each.
For the two Khan superstars, the police will now provide only two armed constables instead of the escort vehicle with four armed constables that shadowed them so far.
Police security has been completely withdrawn from 25 Bollywood personalities.
The decision, police sources said, was taken after a security audit found that manpower is wasted to provide security to Bollywood personalities.
It was felt after the review that security was, in many cases, unwarranted, the sources said.
“These reviews are carried out from time to time and as per the needs, the security is reduced or increased,” an officer, who is connected to the department that deals with security and protection, told NDTV.
Among those who will not get security from the Mumbai Police any more are directors Vidhu Vinod Chopra, Rajkumar Hirani and Farah Khan.
Bollywood producers Karim Morani and Ali Morani will also not get police security anymore.
The Moranis were given police security after gangsters fired at Ali Morani’s house in 2014.
Both Shah Rukh khan and Aamir Khan were caught in controversy recently for their comments on intolerance in the country.