Sonali Joshi Pitale (MID-DAY; April 11, 2014)

In 2011, when the government changed the legal drinking age from 21 to 25, Imran Khan had filed a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) against the move. Now it has emerged that the Bombay High Court has replied to the actor’s PIL, stating that it is working on revising the legal drinking age.

Says Imran, “I wanted to fight for the common man’s basic right. I think that 21-year-olds should have the freedom to do things, but people took it the wrong way. If the government is making money off alcohol consumption, why can’t it stick to 21 as the minimum legal age for drinking? I am hoping that something concrete will be done on this front now that the High Court has replied to my PIL. Often cases drag on for many years and justice is delayed. I was fortunate to get a reply in just two years.”

Ask him if his American citizenship affected the case in any way and he replies, “When I filed the PIL, I wanted it be free of loopholes; I didn’t want authorities to reject it due to some minor errors. To be on the safer side, I filed the PIL along with my brother-in-law, who is an Indian citizen. Though I know that irrespective of my citizenship, I have the right to file a PIL.”