Imran Khan’s Bombay High Court Hearing Today: Actor’s Plea Against Leave-India Order to Be Decided

The Bombay High Court is set to hear actor Imran Khan’s plea on Tuesday, October 27, in what could be his final chance to remain in India. Khan has challenged the order directing him to leave the country by October 28, following his participation in a protest in Mumbai on October 10. The court is expected to decide whether he can continue to stay in India or must leave as directed.

Khan, an American citizen who holds an Overseas Citizen of India (OCI) card, was briefly detained during the protest at Kranti Maidan, which demanded the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar over alleged irregularities in the Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls. Police subsequently issued him a notice to leave India by October 28, and authorities also served a show-cause notice regarding his OCI status. The action rests on provisions under the Immigration and Foreigners Act that bar foreign nationals from participating in political protests on Indian soil.

Khan’s counsel, Venkatesh Dhond, along with solicitor Tushar Mehta, has argued the plea before the court. Khan has maintained that he had no direct hand in the protest and was merely a spectator. On the day of the protest, he had posted a photo of himself flashing a victory sign from what appeared to be a police van, writing, “Apparently I’m going for a drive.”

Best known for Jaane Tu… Ya Jaane Na and Delhi Belly, Khan retired from acting in 2015 and has lived in Mumbai’s Khar area. He is the nephew of superstar Aamir Khan. He has not publicly responded to the leave-India notice beyond his court plea.

Here is the Filmverse take: this hearing matters beyond one actor’s future, because it tests where OCI status ends and foreign-national restrictions begin. OCI cardholders live, work and pay taxes in India, but the law treats political protest as a line they may not cross — and Khan’s “spectator, not participant” argument asks the court to define that line precisely. If the court sides with him, it will be read as a small but significant protection for the many OCI holders who attend public gatherings. If it does not, the October 28 deadline stands, and a former Bollywood star will have to leave the city he has called home for years.

Read our earlier report on the leave-India notice here: https://filmverse.in/imran-khan-frro-notice-leave-india-october-28/

Sources: Filmfare, with background from our earlier coverage. The hearing is scheduled for today; its outcome was not known at the time of publication.