Actor Salman Khan deleted an X post praising the India-Pakistan ceasefire on Saturday shortly after he faced backlash for his alleged silence on Operation Sindoor.
Salman's tweet read, "Thank God for the ceasefire.”
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Netizens criticised the actor for expressing relief over the ceasefire while staying silent on the Indian Armed Forces’s May 7 strike, launched in retaliation to the April 22 Pahalgam massacre that claimed 26 lives.
Several Indian celebrities, including Akshay Kumar, Allu Arjun, Riteish Deshmukh, and Chiranjeevi, had praised the airstrikes under Operation Sindoor. Salman, meanwhile, had condemned the Pahalgam terror attack in a separate post. “Kashmir, heaven on planet Earth, turning into hell. Innocent people being targeted—my heart goes out to their families. Ek bhi be-gunaah ko marna, puri kainaat ko marne ke barabar hai. (Taking the life of even a single innocent is equivalent to the killing of all humanity),” reads his post on X.
On May 10, India and Pakistan announced an immediate cessation of hostilities across land, air, and sea following four days of intense cross-border drone and missile strikes.
Kareena Kapoor Khan, Varun Dhawan, Karan Johar, Ananya Panday and Raveena Tandon were among the Bollywood celebrities who welcomed the ceasefire. Kareena shared “Rab Rakha” and “Jai Hind” on Instagram, while Karan Johar posted folded hands and orange heart emojis. Ananya Panday and Varun Dhawan also expressed support via Instagram Stories.
Raveena Tandon lauded the ceasefire. “If this is true, then it's a welcome decision. But make no mistake — the day India bleeds again through state-sponsored terrorism, it will be an act of war… My country’s enemy is mine. The world must act against terrorism — and fast,” she wrote on Instagram on Saturday.
Filmmaker Shekhar Kapur wrote on X: “Ceasefire declared today… Hopefully, all those who support terrorism against India now realise our leadership will not hold back.”
However, the truce came under strain Saturday night, when India accused Pakistan of violating the ceasefire agreement with drone strikes in Jammu and Kashmir, Rajasthan and Gujarat. The attacks triggered blackouts and renewed tensions.
