Children who accompanied Shah Rukh Khan’s son and daughter to the Wankhede play on the field after the match that Mumbai Indians lost to KKR on Wednesday. Shah Rukh has said the altercation broke out when officials manhandled the children. (AFP picture)

May 17: The Mumbai Cricket Association (MCA) has threatened to ban Shah Rukh Khan from Wankhede Stadium for alleged misbehaviour that provoked an altercation.

On Thursday evening, Mumbai police registered a non-cognisable offence against the actor, who is also KKR’s owner. The non-cognisable tag suggests that as of now, the alleged transgression is not serious enough to warrant a first information report and a formal probe.

The root of the quarrel appeared to be the way guards and officials shooed away a group of children, including Shah Rukh’s daughter and son, who wanted to play on the outfield of the Wankhede after the KKR game against Mumbai was over.

Applied strictly, rules may or may not allow such concessions to children. But it is not unknown either.

In Calcutta, Biswarup Dey, the joint secretary of the Cricket Association of Bengal (CAB), said allowing some activity on the green after matches was “a matter of courtesy” and “in the sprit of the game”.

Dey said KKR, to whom the CAB has rented the Eden Gardens at Rs 30 lakh a match, has to take permission for staging another match after the scheduled IPL matches but not for “minor activity”.

Shah Rukh Khan speaks to reporters at his home in Mumbai on Thursday. (AFP)

“It’s a matter of courtesy to allow some minor activity. The franchise takes permission for any activity on the pitch after the main match. But if some of their guests want to play a little catching game on the outfield or if the team, along with the management, goes for a victory lap, you can’t really ask them to take permission for that,” he said.

But the complexion of what essentially looked like an altercation — with attendant unseemly ingredients that were replayed by some TV channels as the purported transcript of the exchange between Shah Rukh and some officials — changed when the MCA chose to make it an issue. The association has gone to the extent of filing a case and calling a formal meeting tomorrow to discuss the issue.

At his Mumbai home, Shah Rukh told reporters his side of the story.

Excerpts from the account:

‘Don’t touch them’

I didn’t go for the match, I went to pick up my children, post-match. At the 18th over I left my house to pick up my children and come back in the bus with them. They had a bus waiting outside for them. I had no security, as a matter of fact, the security I got was at the stadium.

When I reached, the whole stadium was empty as I got late actually. I saw some of my players and I said congratulations to them. The kids were playing catch-catch on the side of the field. While I was coming down, I saw this gentleman pushing little girls around. I came down, and I said ‘I don’t think you should be touching them’, I said ‘Don’t touch them’. But he kept on whistling and pushing them.

And then one gentleman came from behind and said something in Marathi which is not repeatable. He said something which I think in today’s time and age in our country is something that should not be said. That’s when I said, this is my city, my country, don’t speak to me like this. I don’t even want to repeat because it will get shades which are not right….

I was very angry at him so I turned around to face him, but by then he had already hidden himself behind others of his group, and they started coming at me very aggressively. They all just came down, 30 of them, physically charging at us…. I stood my ground and said ‘Well yeah, come’.

‘It’s unpardonable’

Why should I apologise? I think they should apologise to me for behaving the way they behaved. I am extremely, extremely disturbed that they should manhandle children in the name of security. They are what? Little kids! We had won the match, they were leaving the stadium and there is no right to touch little girls, who are not even 13 years old, physically. I think that is completely unpardonable.

I think it is unpardonable that you physically manhandle children in the name of security. I mean what are the kids going to do? We were not on the pitch. We were on the side, the kids were playing with a ball and they caught this little girl and started pushing. I saw that and I got very angry. I think it’s unpardonable.

I have no clarifications to give. My only clarification is that I think they should look into their association and know how to behave. They cannot under the garb of having self-imposed security rules behave high-handedly with people, especially children. Even if kids misbehave a little, which my kids were not doing, we don’t physically manhandle them.

Angry, yes

I have been hearing some of what they have been saying (on TV) that I was under the influence of alcohol. I came from home and I don’t drink except socially. I think it is extremely fashionable sometimes that when a celebrity gets into an argument the first thing to say is that so and so was drunk. But I wasn’t. I had gone to pick up my children.

And before they say all that they are saying I think they should look at their own behaviour. They were extremely aggressive, and some of the things they said I don’t even want to repeat. And yes, I got angry because of what they said.

I must have said something in my anger for sure, but they misbehaved and abused a lot. I was all alone while they were around 20-25 officials. One of them was this bespectacled short man who was abusing badly…. To be really honest, I am not trying to show off …. I hope I still find the gentleman who spoke rudely and I just think it’s completely wrong how they were behaving.

I will not deny the fact that I was abusing. You don’t need rocket science to know that, but it started when this gentleman from behind came and abused me first.

Will do the same

If they think my behaviour is wrong, then I completely disagree. I think my behaviour is completely correct and if somebody wants to manhandle or physically look at my children or the children I had taken the responsibility for, I will still do the same thing.

And I am not trying to behave like a macho guy here. But it’s not nice when I have taken these children with me, little boys and girls, and 40 grown-up people come aggressively towards me. I will stand my ground and I think that was completely correct on my part to let them know that they can’t just physically push anyone out of there.

There was nothing illegal. I was not on the pitch. I know the rules. When we are in Calcutta, we know we are not allowed on the pitch after the match and so we were not there, the pitches were covered, we were on the side and the kids were playing there. I think the way that security gentleman came and pushed the little girl, it was completely wrong. They became aggressive and I also became aggressive. I think they behaved extremely, extremely irresponsibly.

Celebrity thrill

Personally, if this is the kind of behaviour that is meted out to people at the stadium, then I would not like to go there myself. So I don’t know about this ban and stuff….

I will be very honest, there are a lot of people when they see a celebrity they like to push their weight around and behave a little obnoxious, maybe get a cheap thrill by behaving like this…. it’s an attitude with celebrities. I think that it’s very easy to take on a celebrity and keep on saying anything that you wish to and everybody would believe, it’s extremely fashionable: ‘Oh he was drunk, oh he was abusive, oh he was angry….’

Absolute lie

I have been hearing stories that I have been abusive to some girl… It’s an absolute lie. I have a huge sportsman spirit. To be abusive to fans and audiences, that’s not what I do…. I have been listening to some of the interviews (on TV), and pardon my French, it’s all crap!