MUMBAI, Oct 15 — Bollywood actor Imran Khan, the nephew of superstar Aamir Khan, has been ordered to leave India by October 28 after taking part in a protest demanding electoral reforms, throwing an unexpected twist into his long-awaited acting comeback.

The 43-year-old actor, best known for the 2008 romantic comedy Jaane Tu... Ya Jaane Na, was served a notice by India’s Foreigners Regional Registration Office (FRRO) after joining demonstrators in Mumbai on October 10.

According to the BBC, authorities accused Khan, a US citizen who holds an Overseas Citizen of India (OCI) card, of violating immigration laws by participating in the demonstration.

“Imran Khan participated in the agitation at Mumbai’s August Kranti Maidan, demanding the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar,” police said in a statement today.

“Imran Khan had participated in the agitation despite not being an Indian citizen,” they added.

The OCI card allows foreign nationals of Indian origin to live and work in India, but does not grant them full citizenship or political rights such as voting or contesting elections.

The precise legal grounds for ordering Khan to leave remain unclear, according to The Indian Express. 

The development comes at an awkward moment for the actor, who is returning to the screen this year with the Netflix film Adhure Hum Adhure Tum after more than a decade away from acting.

Khan, who made his leading-man debut in Jaane Tu... Ya Jaane Na, subsequently appeared in films including I Hate Luv Storys, Mere Brother Ki Dulhan and Delhi Belly.

He had earlier appeared as a child actor in his uncle Aamir Khan’s films Qayamat Se Qayamat Tak (1988) and Jo Jeeta Wohi Sikandar (1992).

His latest off-screen controversy began when he joined a protest organised by the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP), a Gen Z-led movement demanding electoral reforms and the resignation of India’s chief election commissioner, Gyanesh Kumar, over allegations of vote fraud.

India’s Election Commission has denied the allegations.

Khan was briefly detained by police alongside other protesters, but appeared to take the experience in his stride.

Posting a photograph of himself inside a police detention van on Instagram, he quipped: “Apparently I’m going for a drive.”

The post subsequently attracted more than two million likes.

Speaking to reporters about his decision to attend the protest, Khan insisted he was there in a personal capacity rather than representing any political organisation.

“I don’t have demands. I’m here as a citizen, as a person who lives in this city. I’m here to see why freedom of movement is being restricted, why people’s voices are being suppressed,” he said.

The actor’s participation drew a complaint from Kirit Somaiya, a politician from Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).

Somaiya accused Khan of being “involved in a conspiracy to spread anarchy in India”, an allegation the actor has not directly addressed.

The complaint prompted authorities to examine Khan’s immigration status, culminating in the notice requiring him to leave India by October 28.

Khan has yet to publicly comment on the order.

The controversy comes amid a wave of demonstrations across India, with thousands taking to the streets in Delhi, Mumbai and other cities to demand the election commissioner’s resignation.

Opposition leaders, including Congress MP Rahul Gandhi, joined a large protest march in New Delhi on Monday, while two senior CJP figures were jailed for five days on Wednesday after being arrested over alleged trespassing at a protest site, according to the BBC.

The movement has called for another demonstration in the capital today.

For Khan, whose return to acting had already generated interest after years away from Bollywood, the immigration notice now raises questions about his immediate plans in India.

It remains unclear whether he intends to challenge the order before the October 28 deadline.