Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis has firmly rejected claims that Mumbai is an unsafe city, following an attack on Bollywood actor Saif Ali Khan in the Bandra area.
Fadnavis addressed the controversy on Thursday, asserting that it is inappropriate to label the city as dangerous based solely on one unfortunate incident.
The attack, which occurred early in the morning, involved an intruder who entered Saif Ali Khan’s home with the intent of committing a burglary. During the altercation that ensued, the actor was stabbed multiple times, suffering significant injuries, particularly to his spinal cord.
After undergoing surgery, Saif's condition is now stable, and he is reportedly recovering well.
Despite the gravity of the incident, Fadnavis was quick to defend Mumbai's reputation, emphasising that this was an isolated case. He responded to Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) chief Arvind Kejriwal's criticism, who had pointed to the attack as evidence of a failure in security.
Kejriwal had used the incident to criticise the Maharashtra government, questioning its ability to ensure the safety of prominent public figures, let alone ordinary citizens.
The AAP leader highlighted previous incidents, including an attack on actor Salman Khan and the killing of political leader Baba Siddiqui, to argue that the state’s double-engine government had failed to provide adequate security.
Fadnavis, however, dismissed these allegations, stating that while such attacks should never be trivialised, using them to paint Mumbai as an unsafe city was an exaggeration.
"Mumbai is the safest. It is wrong to say that Mumbai is an unsafe city on the basis of only one such incident," Fadnavis remarked, defending the city’s overall safety record. He went on to assert that Mumbai remains one of the safest megacities in India, despite occasional crimes.
The attack on Saif Ali Khan has raised serious concerns, with opposition parties quick to point out the broader implications. According to the police, the intruder entered the actor’s house at around 2:30 AM.
The alarm was triggered when a house help noticed the intruder, and the actor confronted the assailant. This led to a violent struggle, during which Saif Ali Khan was stabbed six times.
The intruder, whose identity has since been confirmed, managed to flee the scene, but police have launched an extensive manhunt, forming ten teams to apprehend him.
In addition to Saif Ali Khan’s injuries, the house help also sustained minor injuries while trying to intervene. The Maharashtra police have assured the public that they are doing everything in their power to bring the attacker to justice.
Fadnavis, in his statement, reiterated the importance of taking such incidents seriously while emphasising that they should not be used as grounds for undermining the city’s safety as a whole.
Follow us
