'Main Sikander Hoon': Lyricist sends threat messages to Salman Khan in bid to make song famous, held

MUMBAI: The city Crime Branch arrested a man from Raichur for sending threatening messages for actor Salman Khan and demanding a ransom of Rs 5 crore.

The threats were reportedly sent from a WhatsApp number registered to an individual named Sohail Pasha, who claimed to be the writer of a song ‘Main Sikandar Hoon' and wanted the song to become famous.

According to the police on Nov 7 the traffic police received multiple threatening WhatsApp messages were sent to the Mumbai Traffic Control Room's helpline, allegedly warning of harm to the actor if the ransom was not paid. The messages were traced to a phone number under Sohail Pasha's name.

Following the complaint by Sunita Ishwar Kadam, an officer with the transport branch, the Worli Police Station registered a case under sections 308(4) and 351(3) of the Indian Penal Code.

The investigation led authorities to one Venkatesh Narayan, whose phone number was linked to the WhatsApp messages. Narayan, found in Karnataka, owned a basic mobile phone without internet access. Police discovered an OTP for WhatsApp installation was received on his phone on Nov 3, 2024.

Narayan explained that he had briefly lent his phone to a stranger in a market that day, who claimed they needed to make a call. It was during this interaction that the stranger allegedly installed WhatsApp using Narayan's number on a separate device.

Pasha is alleged to have used Narayan's phone number to send the ransom messages. He has been detained by authorities and handed over to the Worli Police for further questioning.

He told police he did this to make his song popular on social media. Police have handed over the accused to Worli police for further investigations.


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