Indian Filmmaker's Controversial Gandhi Quote, Stirs up Alleged Family Ties With Terror Plotter

Veteran actress-cum-filmmaker Pooja Bhatt’s recent post quoting Mahatma Gandhi has led to several censuring her for her brother Rahul Bhatt’s alleged friendship with David Headley, the key conspirator in the 2008 Mumbai terror act currently serving a 35-year prison term in the US for his role in the attack.

Rahul Bhatt, son of renowned Indian director Mahesh Bhatt, found himself amid one of the most significant counter-terrorism probes and came under scrutiny after his name was repeatedly used in emails exchanged between Headley and Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) handlers. Rahul was subsequently cleared of wrongdoing following trials.
Social media regulars took aim at the actress and reminded her about the dark family episode, leading to #DavidHeadley trending on Twitter in India.

The tweet caused many to speculate that her comment was a jibe at Prime Minister Narendra Modi's recent meeting with Bollywood biggies, seeking their cooperation to popularise Gandhi’s ideology and commemorating his 150th birth anniversary.

In November 2008, Mumbai came under a series of terrorist attacks that took place, when 10 members of a Pakistani-based terrorist group Lashkar-e-Taiba carried out 12 coordinated shooting and bombing attacks over the course of four days, across the city.