After Rs 5cr death threat, fatwa issued against Aamir Khan

Mumbai: Aamir Khan simply cannot catch a break since marrying Gauri Spratt. After an Ayodhya-based Hindu religious leader announced a reward of Rs 5 crore for killing him, a Muslim cleric has now issued a fatwa objecting to the actor’s interfaith marriage.

The latest controversy was triggered by Maulana Ibrahim Hussain, the Shahi Chief Mufti of Muslim Personal Darul Ifta. According to his interpretation of Sharia, a Muslim man cannot marry a non-Muslim woman unless she embraces Islam. He described Aamir and Gauri’s marriage as sinful and said the actor should repent before Allah.

The cleric further claimed that such decisions by prominent Muslims could create confusion about Islamic teachings and damage the image of the religion. Aamir and Gauri have not publicly responded to the fatwa so far.

Aamir and Gauri tied the knot on July 5 through a registered ceremony under the Special Marriage Act. The private wedding was held at the actor’s Mumbai residence in the presence of their children, family members and close friends.

The fatwa comes amid an already disturbing wave of attacks against the actor. Jagadguru Paramhans Acharya, the head of Tapasvi Chhawani in Ayodhya, recently announced that he would give Rs 5 crore to anyone who killed Aamir. He also claimed that he would cover the attacker’s legal expenses and hand over the reward to their family.

Paramhans made the threat while supporting Maharashtra minister Nitesh Rane, who had labelled Aamir the “brand ambassador of love jihad”. Bajrang Dal workers had earlier protested against the wedding, burned the actor’s effigy and accused him of deliberately marrying Hindu women.

Aamir’s marriage has now attracted outrage from completely opposite religious corners. While Hindutva groups are accusing him of “love jihad” for marrying Hindu women, a Muslim cleric is condemning him for marrying outside his faith. Lost in all this outrage is the simple fact that Aamir and Gauri are two consenting adults who legally chose to marry each other.