Several mainstream Indian news outlets misreported that Bollywood actor Salman Khan had been labelled a “terrorist” by the Home Department of Pakistan’s Balochistan province, following his recent remarks making a distinction between Pakistan and the people of Balochistan, at an event in Saudi Arabia.
The false claim was furthered by a viral fake circular purporting to be from the Balochistan provincial administration.
The fake circular surfaced after a panel discussion at the Joy Forum on October 17, 2025, which also featured actors Aamir Khan and Shah Rukh Khan.
During the event, Salman Khan remarked, “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 Malayalam 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.”
His remarks have since gone viral over Indian social media.
The Claim: Salman Khan has been declared a “terrorist” by the Home Department of Pakistan’s Balochistan province
News outlets including Times Of India, Mint, Telegraph, News 18, DD News, Money Control, and Outlook, picked up the fake circular from social media and reported on it.
The purpoted notification states that it was issued on October 16, 2025, by the Balochistan provincial government and has placed Khan’s name under the Fourth Schedule of Pakistan’s Anti-Terrorism Act, 1997, designating him as an “Azad Balochistan Facilitator.”
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What We Found:
1) Notification Date Pre-dates Joy Forum Panel
The circular is dated October 16, 2025. However, the panel discussion featuring Salman, Aamir, and Shah Rukh Khan was live-streamed on October 17, which was the second day of the Joy Forum held in Riyadh. This establishes that the notification pre-dates Salman's Balochistan comment.
The event was live streamed by the YouTube channel of Saudi On Demand. This is the official English language media brand for the Saudi Broadcasting Authority (SBA), the state-owned public broadcaster.
Salman Khan's Balochistan comment can be heard at the 3.50.10 minutes timestamp.
2) CNIC Number on notification
Another discrepancy in the document is that it mentions a Computerized National Identity Card (CNIC) number for Salman Khan. However, this unique identification number is only for Pakistani citizens.
The number mentioned is 11 digits - 52203-000000, however Pakistani CNIC numbers are 13 digits.
3) Original Balochistan Govt Gazette
BOOM then reached out to Pakistan-based Soch Fact Check, which confirmed that the viral document is doctored to include the Bollywood actor's name.
They pointed us to another gazette notification issued by the Balochistan provincial government on October 16, 2025.
The circular is similar to the viral notice and bears the same date and mentions the names of three activists. The Central Organizer of the Baloch Women Forum (BWF) Dr. Shalee Baloch along with two other activists of the Baloch Yakjehti Committee Nazgul and Syed Bibi Sharif, names were included in the Fourth Schedule under section 11-EE of the Anti-Terrorism Act, 1997.
The original notification can be seen in the tweet below.
3) Pakistan's Ministry of Information and Broadcasting denies claim
Pakistan's Ministry of Information and Broadcasting took to X on October 26, 2025 dismissing the viral notification.
The post included an article screenshot by India Today with the headline, "Pakistan puts Salman Khan on terror watchlist after Balochistan remark", terming the notification fake.
The tweet stated that, "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."
