Pakistan Ministry Debunks ‘Fake News’ on Salman Khan Being Placed on Terror Watchlist

Salman Khan declared terrorist in Pakistan for Balochistan comment? Pak govt issues clarification: 'Given the optics...'

The Ministry’s official fact-checking team labeled the viral Indian news reports as “unverified and false,” stating no official notification exists.

Reports claiming that actor Salman Khan had been declared a “terrorist” and placed on a terror watchlist (Fourth Schedule) by the Pakistan government for a recent comment about Balochistan have been officially refuted. Pakistan’s Ministry of Information and Broadcasting (MoIB) has stepped in to clear the confusion surrounding the sensational news.

Pak Ministry Labels Watchlist Claim ‘Fake News’

On Sunday, the MoIB’s official fact-checking team used their social media account (formerly Twitter/X) to address the speculation. They posted a screenshot of a news headline, which claimed ‘Pakistan puts Salman Khan on terror watchlist after Balochistan remark,’ and stamped it with a clear declaration: ‘Fake news / unverified.’

The Ministry highlighted the specific, unverified claim: “Salman Khan has allegedly been placed on Pakistan’s ‘Fourth Schedule’ under its Anti-Terrorism Act after making remarks about Balochistan, and is labelled a ‘terror facilitator’.”

Official Statement Confirms Claim is False

The MoIB confirmed that the reports lacked any official basis, stating:

“No Pakistani government official statement, notification or entry was found on NACTA’s proscribed persons page or any Ministry of Interior / provincial Home Department gazette notifying Salman Khan’s inclusion in Fourth Schedule.”

The Ministry noted that all publicly available reports originated from Indian media and could not be traced back to any formal Pakistani announcement or official watchlist publication.

The Ministry concluded by calling the claim “unverified and false,” suggesting the story appeared to be a “sensational headline rather than a substantiated fact.”

What Salman Khan Actually Said

The entire controversy stemmed from a comment Salman Khan made earlier this month while attending the Joy Forum 2025 in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, alongside Shah Rukh Khan and Aamir Khan.

Addressing the popularity of Indian cinema in the Middle East, the actor said:

“Right now, if you make a Hindi film and release it here (in Saudi Arabia), it will be a superhit. If you make a Tamil, Telugu, or Malayali film, it will do hundreds of crores in business because so many people from other countries have come here. There are people from Balochistan, there are people from Afghanistan, there are people from Pakistan… everyone is working here.“

Balochistan, located in the southwestern region of Pakistan, has a long history of demanding autonomy and independence, a political movement that has often led to tension and controversy.

Disha Rojhe