Monday, March 14 2005 22:13 Hrs (IST) - World Time -

Mumbai: A sting operation by a television channel, capturing actor Shakti Kapoor in the casting couch game, today (Mar 14, 2005) unleashed a wave of fury with BJP (Bharatiya Janata Party) workers staging a demonstration outside his Juhu residence, a newspaper editor demanding his arrest and the apex body of TV and film producers calling for a ban against the screen villain.

Kapoor was secretly screened by a television channel while allegedly asking for sexual favours from a journalist posing as an aspiring actress and alleging that the "casting couch" was a common practice in Bollywood.

Taking strong reaction to his allegations, the Film and TV Producers' guild of India today dubbed Kapoor's statements as 'slanderous, mischievous and unsubstantiated aspersions' cast by the actor. The guild also advised its members not to engage Kapoor in any of their projects.

The guild further demanded a public apology from the actor for utterances made against some members whereby he had during a sting operation by the TV channel named Bollywood personalities including Subhash Ghai and the late Yash Johar as indulging in the casting-couch.

Several BJP workers, including women wing of the party, led by Shaina NC, staged a demonstration in front of the actor's suburban residence. The angry workers shouted slogans and threw shoes and eggs on the posters of the actor.

An editor of a local daily also urged police to book the actor under relevant laws for his 'indecent behaviour'. However, police were yet act on his application.

Meanwhile, director Subhash Ghai and actress Preity Zinta, whom the actor had named in the casting couch game, came down heavily on Kapoor for his utterances.