Last week, a video of Salman Khan at the Mumbai airport surfaced, in which a CISF officer can be seen stopping him, and gesturing him towards the mandatory security check. The video soon went viral and some reports claimed that the ASI who stopped Salman Khan was penalised.

Responding to it, the CISF clarified via a tweet that the ASI was not penalised, but was instead “suitably rewarded for exemplary professionalism in the discharge of his duty.”

Now, the CISF has shared with us that the ASI wasn’t rewarded for stopping Salman either. The CISF adds that it is routine process to get documents checked at the airport, regardless of the passenger’s celebrity status.

DIG Anil Pandey, Chief Spokesperson, CISF, tells us, “Someone shot a video of Salman Khan at the airport and a rumour was spread that the CISF personnel who stopped him was taken to task, hence we had to clarify on Twitter. It was ASI Somnath Mohanty who was on duty, and as per security protocol at the airport, he stopped Salman Khan and asked him to get security clearance. Every passenger has to go through the same procedure.”

Clarifying the reward given to the ASI, Anil adds, “The ASI on duty was not rewarded for stopping Salman Khan, but he was rewarded in internal assessment as the best performer. We have our internal reward mechanism. What ASI Mohanty did was a routine check, and nothing exceptional. Not just in Mumbai, but the CISF personnel at all the airports across the country follow the same procedure for airport checkins of celebrities as for any other passenger.” The security protocol is different for only those who are on the VIP list of the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA), he says.

The CISF officials say that due to the presence of paparazzi and fans at the airports, when big stars are stopped it goes viral, but celebrities don’t get any different treatment. A CISF official says, “It is standard protocol. Most of the time, when actors travel, their assistants step in to show documents and ID of the celebrity.”

In 2019, Deepika Padukone was stopped by a CISF jawan and asked to show her ID. While this is a regular protocol, fans on social media praised the actress for not having any starry airs and stepping back to show her ID before entering the airport. During the pandemic, glass shields have been put up at airports at entry points and for identification, even celebrities are asked to remove masks.

Recently, videos of Deepika Padukone and Kiara Advani were circulated online when the CISF asked them to remove masks for check-in, and fans went gaga over how they followed the rules. Anil Pandey says, “I don’t remember even a single incident where any Bollywood celebrity didn’t stop for the security check or created any issue.”

However, there are some instances of celebs arguing with airport officials over security checks. In 2018, on their way back to Mumbai from Ahmedabad, Sunny Leone’s entourage did not get a priority security check at the airport. She had reached the airport late and asked airport officials that her bodyguards be allowed to jump the queue, but they weren’t allowed.

In a series of tweets, she had said, “Beyond disappointed in the Ahmedabad Airport... Well, there were many things, but I did expect the airport people to help and I guess that’s my bad. Next time I don’t think I’ll fly through this airport without confirmation that the airport security will have compassion for those who need it.”