Mumbai: Bollywood actor Saif Ali Khan, who was hospitalised after being stabbed by an intruder at his and actress Karina Kapoor's Bandra residence in Mumbai, is on the road to recovery and his condition is stable, while the accused involved in the robbery attempt has been identified by the Police.
Khan, who suffered serious injuries after being stabbed at his Mumbai residence by a thief, was admitted to Lilavati Hospital at 3.30 am, Dr Neeraj Uttmani, Chief Operating Officer of the Hospital told media persons.
Saif Ali Khan was brought to Lilavati (hospital) at 3.30 am. He has six stab wounds of which two are deeper. One of the injury is closer to his spine. We are operating on him. He is being operated upon by Neurosurgeon Nitin Dange, Cosmetic Surgeon Leena Jain and Anaesthetist Nisha Gandhi,” Uttamani further said earlier.
Dr Nitin Dange, who performed surgery said that Khan had sustained a major injury to his "thoracic spine while surgery was performed to remove the knife and also to repair the leaking spinal fluid.
Khan is completely stable now. He is in recovery mode and is completely out of danger. We will shift him out of ICU tomorrow morning," Dr Dange added.
Meanwhile, the Mumbai Police has identified the accused who used the fire escape staircase to enter the actor's residence.
Speaking to the media, Dixit Gedam, Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP) Zone 9 of Mumbai Police, said that burglary was the motive behind the attack.
"It has been discovered that the accused used the fire escape staircase to enter their house. So far, the investigation suggests that it was an attempted burglary. We are making every effort to arrest the accused as soon as possible. Once he is arrested, we will be able to disclose further details,"he further said.
"One accused has been identified, and teams are in the field to arrest him. There are 10 detection teams working in different directions but no one has been arrested so far in connection with the case, the DCP added.
As per reports, no outsider was spotted in the CCTV footage two hours before the incident. The assailant was heading to the room of Saif Ali Khan’s younger son Jeh when the maid started screaming. Saif rushed to the spot and got involved in a scuffle with the alleged burglar.
The police was probing all the angles along with local Bandra police officer of Mumbai crime branch who is also engaged in the investigation, sources in Mumbai police said.
Khan along with his family, wife Karena Kapoor and two sons Taimur and Jeh, lives in 'Satguru Sharan' building at the 12th floor.
As per a statement issued in the morning soon after the incident by the actor’s team, there was an attempted burglary at his Bandra residence.
“There was an attempted burglary at Saif Ali Khan’s residence. He is currently in the hospital undergoing a surgery. We request the media and fans to be patient. It is a police matter. We will keep you updated on the situation,” the statement said.
Incident shocks stars, politicians
Wishes and prayers for his recovery poured in from members of the film industry and other celebrities.
"Shocked and saddened to hear about the attack on Saif sir. Wishing and praying for his speedy recovery and good health," actor NT Rama Rao Jr. said on X.
Others expressed concern over the security breach.
"If such high-profile people with [high] levels of security can be attacked in their homes, what could happen to common citizens?" Clyde Crasto, spokesperson of the Nationalist Congress Party, wrote on X.
Khan has appeared in around 70 films and television series in his career, some of which he has also produced.
He is the son of cricketer Mansur Ali Khan Pataudi and actress Sharmila Tagore.
