Imam Siddique writes open letter to Salman Khan over Bigg Boss 20 remark

Imam Siddique, who took part in the sixth season of Bigg Boss, has written an open letter to host Salman Khan. He was reacting to the October 3 Weekend Ka Vaar episode of Bigg Boss 20, where Salman brought up his name. Fans of the show will remember Imam as the contestant who once told the host, "Salman bhai, time out."

Salman mentioned Imam while taking current contestant Qazi Touqeer to task over his behaviour in the house. Reports say Qazi was being called out for how he treated fellow contestant Kanika Manna. Salman reportedly told him that Imam had also made up his mind to bother other housemates during his own season. In his letter, Imam quoted the host's words, "Imam Siddique ne bhi yeh kiya tha", and rejected the comparison outright.

Imam called the mention "extremely defamatory and factually incorrect" and said he never harassed any contestant to trouble them. He said his Bigg Boss 6 journey was about entertainment, tasks and performance. He argued that being held up as a bad example in front of a huge television audience, with no chance to answer back, hurts his reputation, his 44 years of work and his family's honour.

Imam has asked for the record to be set straight. "I humbly request a clarification and correction on the show, and that my name not be used in a defamatory context in future," he wrote. He also said he has always respected Salman as an elder brother in the industry, and he hopes the matter will be handled fairly.

According to reports, Imam finished as runner-up in Bigg Boss 6, which ran from 2012 to 2013 and was won by Urvashi Dholakia. In the same Weekend Ka Vaar episode, Salman reportedly said he was not favouring any contestant. He also pointed out that Qazi had told viewers about a plan to pretend to be ill before acting it out inside the house.