Akshay Kumar opens up about controversy over his Canadian citizenship

On April 29, when Mumbai went to vote, the media,a s usual, made it a point to note which Bollywood celebrities turned up to vote. When Akshay Kumar, who had a month ago, urged people to make sure they cast their vote saying, "true hallmark of a democracy lies in peoples participation in the electoral process. Voting has to be a superhit prem katha between our nation and its voters," wasn't found along with his wife Twinkle Khanna to vote, there were speculations about the actor's nationality.

Later, when the issue was brought up with the actor by the media, he dodged questions on his conspicuous absence.

Now, the actor has come out to clarify the issue of his citizenship. “Really don’t understand unwarranted interest & negativity about my citizenship. I have never hidden or denied that I hold a Canadian passport. It is also equally true that I have not visited Canada in the last seven years. I work in India, and pay all my taxes in India,” ANI quoted him as saying.

“While all these years, I have never needed to prove my love for India to anyone, I find it disappointing that my citizenship issue is constantly dragged into needless controversy, a matter that is personal, legal, non-political, and of no consequence to others,” he was quoted as saying.

Akshay Kumar absence was particularly noted in the wake of the "non-political" interview with Prime Minister Narendra Modi.