It took an operation of around nine hours and a chase of about 10 kms. before the Bombay city crime branch on April 11 detained the person who had made a call to the police control room, threatening to eliminate Salman Khan. The caller turned out to be a 16-year-old boy, a class IX dropout from Rajasthan. Salman has been provided Y+ security by the Bombay police.
At around 9.15 p.m. on April 10, the Bombay police control room received a phone call in which the caller said, he would kill Salman on April 30. He went on to tell the cop, who answered the phone call, to inform the star about it. When the control room personnel dialled the caller’s number after he disconnected his phone call, he identified himself as Rockybhai, a gau rakshak (cow vigilante) from Jodhpur in Rajasthan. Some weeks earlier, Salman’s office received an email threatening to eliminate the actor.
Soon after the phone call, the city crime branch formed three teams to nab the caller. Two persons — the boy and his cousin — whom the police suspected to be the criminals, were arrested near Padgha, taluka Shahpur in Thane district after 1.30 a.m. on April 11. They were brought to Bombay. The minor boy admitted to having made the call. He had come from Rajasthan around 10 days back and was staying with his cousin at Padgha. The boy said, he did not know much about the actor. He added that he wanted to see Bombay and learn imitation jewellery work from his cousin.
The police placed the minor before the Child Welfare Committee as per the Juvenile Justice Act guidelines. The Committee ordered to keep the minor at the David Sassoon Industrial School and Children’s Home. He is likely to be handed over to his parents.
