Chhota Shakeel could be my fan: Salman

MUMBAI: In a jolt to the prosecution,Salman Khan went back on his earlier statement that Pakistan-based gangsterChhota Shakeel had coerced him to act in Bharat Shah''s movie Chori Chori Chupke Chupke. Appearing in the court, Salman admitted ChhotaShakeel spoke to him over phone but denied being threatened."Yes, Shakeelcalled me on my cell phone twice in 2000 ... once when I was in London and laterin Mumbai. He just said hello to me," Salman told prosecutor RohiniSalian.To a question why Shakeel had called him, Salman said, "Maybe he isa fan of mine."Salman also failed to identify Abdul Rahim Allah Baksh, anaccused in the case. According to police, Abdul Rahim was the front man ofShakeel and was working as an assistant to film producer Nasim Rizvi.Rizvi allegedly forged links with Shakeel to target film personalities forfinancial gains.Deposing before Justice A P Bhangale, Salman retracted hisstatement to police that Rizvi had threatened him to act in Chori Chori Chupke Chupke because he was not giving dates due to busy schedule.The prosecution had alleged that the film was made by producer Rizvi andfinanced by Bharat Shah at Shakeel''s behest and that all the three were partnersin the venture.Salman is a witness in the case of alleged Bollywood nexuswith the underworld. Earlier, 13 witnesses, including Shah Rukh Khan, RakeshRoshan, Ratan Jain, Harish Sughand, Mahesh Manjrekar and Sanjay Gupta, hadturned hostile.