Out-of-towners outside Salman’s house show solidarity with ‘Bhai’

Mumbai: Even as investigations into the shootout outside actor Salman Khan's house gathered pace, a stream of fans kept arriving outside his residence near Bandra Bandstand to show solidarity with 'Bhai' as they call him. Most were out-of-towners on a summer vacation to Mumbai. They took selfies at the building entrance, with the Galaxy Apartment plaque firmly in frame. At 6.20 pm, a group of friends from Pune including Ehtesham and Wajahat landed a scoop when they shot videos of Salman Khan leaving his apartment in a white SUV amid a convoy of vehicles. Among the onlookers was a maulana who teaches at a madrassa in Surat. He came with his wife and three children after having toured Haji Ali and Mahim dargahs. "I offer dua'as for Salman's welfare," he said. Policemen who are keeping vigil in 12-hour shifts pointed to the broken gate of Galaxy Garden opposite the building. "The gate gave way after a large crowd of fans crashed into it as they tried to duck a police lathicharge on Eid ul' Fitr April 11. Welding work is under way and it will soon be repaired," said a watchman. "Thousands of people had arrived to greet Bhai and see him appear on the balcony at Eid. Otherwise the tarpaulin sheet covering the verandah usually remains drawn."Reports said Khan was keen to resume work after the mishap. He has requested celebrities to avoid visiting the apartment, given inconvenience caused to other residents of the society. Since the incident, politicians Baba Siddique, his son Zeeshan and Raj Thackeray as well as filmmaker Mahesh Manjrekar arrived at Khan's residence. In the first official statement from the family, Salman's brother, actor Arbaaz Khan wrote on Instagram Monday evening, "The recent incident of firing by two unidentified persons on a motorcycle at Galaxy apartment the residence of the Salim Khan family is very disturbing and unnerving. Our family has been taken aback by this shocking incident that took place. Unfortunately some people claiming to be close to our family and pretending to be the spokesperson have been making loose statements to the media saying it's all a publicity stunt and the family remains unaffected which is not true and these views should not be taken seriously (sic)." "No member of the Salim Khan family has made any statement regarding this incident to the media. At this time the family is helping and cooperating with police in the investigation of this untoward incident. We have faith in Mumbai police and we have been assured they will do everything in their capacity to protect and secure our family. Thank you everyone for your love and support." His father told a TV channel, “They just want publicity.”