Salman Khan's sympathetic comments on 1993 blasts convict Yakub Memon continue to evoke heartburn despite his apology. The BJP youth wing has urged the state to cancel the actor's bail in the hit-and-run case. The plea is supported by goldsmiths of Zaveri Bazar, some of whom are calling for a boycott of his films.

"We have written to governor Ch Vidyasagar Rao to exercise his special powers and cancel Salman Khan's bail. Our demand was conveyed by BJP MLA Ashish Shelar. How can a convict who is himself out on bail question the legal verdict over a convicted terrorist," said Ganesh Pandey, Mumbai president of the Bharatiya Janata Yuva Morcha. Pandey had led a protest march outside the actor's home in Galaxy apartment in Bandra on Sunday.

Pandey drew vocal support from various businessmen in Zaveri Bazar. The hub of Mumbai's bullion trade has been targeted by anti-national elements on three occasions, beginning with 1993 then 2003 and again in 2011.

In 1993, a scooter laden with 16 kg of RDX was parked outside goldsmith Kanaya Kakad's store. "We were lucky it did not explode, but a car bomb blew a few yards away which killed scores of people. We saw dismembered bodies strewn about the gully. Is Salman really an Indian, I wonder, when I see his irresponsible statements. The verdict against Yakub Memon is not communal, it is merely punishment for a convicted criminal. I think the public should boycott Khan's films," said Kakad.

Kumar Jain, vice-president of the Mumbai Jewellers' Association, said, "Monday's brazen attack on a police station in Gurdaspur proves how carefully one must speak in public domain. How can an actor who is a role model for millions show sympathy for a convict?"