In what appears to have become a routine practice for the Bollywood superstar at US airports, Shah Rukh Khan was detained at the Los Angeles airport by immigration department officials today. He was, however, let off after questioning and other security checks.
The incident has left millions of his fans miffed and triggered some angry reactions, pressing the US authorities into damage control. US Ambassador to India Richard Verma took to Twitter to issue an apology to the actor.
"Sorry for the trouble at LAX @iamsrk. We are working to ensure it doesn’t happen again. Your work inspires millions, including in the US," he wrote.
The ‘Fan’ actor earlier took to Twitter to share the news about his detention.
The 50-year-old said that he fully respects and understand the security and law of the world but getting detained every time ‘really really sucks’.
“I fully understand & respect security with the way the world is, but to be detained at US immigration every damn time really really sucks,” he tweeted.
“The brighter side is while waiting caught some really nice Pokemons,” another tweet reads.
The State Department could not immediately make any comment on why the Indian super star was detained at the Los Angeles airport.
However, Assistant secretary of state for south and central Asia in the US Department of State Nisha Desai Biswal has apologised for "hassle" Khan faced at the airport.
"Sorry for the hassle at the airport, @iamsrk - even American diplomats get pulled for extra screening," Biswal tweeted.
This is not the first time that Khan has been detained at a US airport.
Khan was detained at New York airport for over two hours by immigration officials in 2012. The US customs and border protection authorities had expressed "profound" apologies for the Shah Rukh Khan's detention then.
In 2009 also, Khan was also detained by US immigration officials at Newark Liberty International Airport in New Jersey because his name came up on a computer alert list.
