Like every season, Salman Khan-hosted reality show Bigg Boss 20 continues to draw controversy. The latest one involves contestants Manish Goel and Qazi Touqeer, whose playful interaction during a role-play task took an unexpected turn after Qazi accused Manish of inappropriate touching.
The accusations sparked a heated confrontation inside the house, and now Manish's son Aryaveer Goel has come out in his father's support.
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After Manish broke down inside the house while defending himself against allegations of inappropriate touching, Aryaveer shared a series of statements, questioning the narrative surrounding the incident and hitting back at those targeting his father.
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Taking to social media, he made it clear that he was not intimidated by the criticism and backlash directed at his father. Aryaveer wrote, “Thank you to all the contestants who took a stand. And to the Qazi fans, I am NOT scared of any of you. The blindness and toxicity is honestly unbelievable.”
Explaining his perspective, Aryaveer said that he had always appreciated the friendship and playful bond between Manish and Qazi. However, he felt that the situation took an unacceptable turn when Qazi made an allegation as serious as inappropriate touching.
Defending his father, Aryaveer claimed that Qazi had initiated the confrontation and provoked Manish during the interaction.
He further wrote, “But what happened yesterday crossed a line. Qazi was the one who pounced on my father first, made strange gestures and provoked him. My dad played along too, and nobody had a problem then. It was all fun and games until he decided to pull a prank by making an accusation as serious as inappropriate touching. Do you understand the gravity of such allegations?”
Reaffirming his faith in his father, Aryaveer said that one person's version of events should not automatically be accepted as the truth.
“I KNOW MY FATHER. One person's narrative doesn't make it the truth. Even the people inside that house know Qazi overdid it. Please stop blindly following someone and start using your own judgement,” he added.
Concluding his statement, Aryaveer wrote, “You can dislike his game, disagree with him or criticise him. But you will NOT get away with disrespecting his character. I love you, Papa. I know the man you are, and I will ALWAYS stand by you. No matter what.”
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What happened between Manish Goel and Qazi Touqeer?
The controversy began during a role-play task in which Qazi dressed up as a woman in a lehenga choli and interacted playfully with Manish. According to the show's promos, Manish lifted Qazi and carried him towards the bathroom as part of the act.
The exchange soon turned into an argument when Qazi said that the physical interaction had made him uncomfortable and accused Manish of touching him inappropriately. He reportedly compared the alleged behaviour to hooligans who harass women on the streets.
The allegations left Manish visibly emotional and he broke down into tears. While defending himself in the nomination room, the actor spoke about his wife, daughter, mother and sister, insisting that he had always respected women.
Manish also mentioned his female co-stars, including Juhi Parmar, with whom he had worked for several years, and said he knew that she had always felt safe around him.
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