Mumbai Police arrested a man from Karnataka for sending threatening messages to Bollywood actor Salman Khan and demanding a ransom of Rs 5 crore.

The threats were sent by 24-year-old Sohail Pasha, who claimed to be the writer of a song "Main Sikandar Hoon" and wanted to be famous.

According to the police, on November 7, a message was sent to the city's police WhatsApp helpline threatening that if Rs 5 crore were not paid, Salman Khan and the lyricist of "Main Sikandar Hoon" would be killed. The threat said that the songwriter would face severe retaliation within a month.

The message challenged Salman Khan, saying, "If Salman Khan has the courage, he should save them."

Initially, it was believed that the threat was sent by the Lawrence Bishnoi gang, who had previously targeted the Bollywood actor over issues linked to a blackbuck poaching case from 1998.

The police said that the lyricist had called the Mumbai Traffic Control Room because he wanted publicity for the song.

Meanwhile, Salman Khan has been shooting for his upcoming film, Sikandar, at Hyderabad's Falaknuma Palace amid a four-tier security arrangement following several death threats by gangster Lawrence Bishnoi. 

Source: India Today