MUMBAI: An Indian court allowed Bollywood actor Imran Khan to remain in the country until at least Nov 2, local media said on Tuesday, pausing a government order that asked him to leave for breaching immigration laws by allegedly participating in a protest.
Khan, 43, is a US citizen and was asked to leave the country by Oct 28 after he was accused of joining protests in Mumbai against the country's election chief this month.
Under Indian law, the participation of foreigners in political protests can be treated as a violation of immigration and visa rules.
Khan appealed against the order in the Bombay High Court, saying it was unconstitutional and arbitrary, local media reported.
There was no evidence to show that Khan participated in the protest and mobilised a crowd, his lawyer said in the appeal, legal website Live Law reported.
On Tuesday, the Bombay High Court postponed the hearing to Nov 2 due to technical reasons and said that the order Khan had challenged would remain on hold until then, legal website Bar and Bench posted on X.
There has been no official statement from Mumbai Police on Khan’s case. The city's police chief did not respond to a Reuters request for comment.
A nephew of actor Aamir Khan, Imran belongs to a prominent film family. He acted in several hit Bollywood films from 2008 to 2015, before suddenly retiring.
His partner, Lekha Washington, said in a post on her Instagram page on Oct 12 that she, Khan, his mother and a cousin walked toward the protest site to ask about a friend who had been detained by police and were immediately surrounded by media representatives.
"He (Imran) responded to the questions of the media, saying we have no demands, we are not part of an organisation," Washington said in the post.
Both Khan and Washington posted pictures from inside what appeared to be a police van on the day of the protests, smiling into the camera.
The rally in Mumbai was one of several protests across the country demanding the resignation of chief election commissioner Gyanesh Kumar over what opposition parties and activists say is a revision of voter lists that benefits Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Bharatiya Janata Party.