Actor Akshay Kumar has responded to the growing controversy over his citizenship in a statement claiming that he has never hidden the fact that he holds a Canadian passport.

Akshay’s citizenship status has been called into question over the past few days with many claiming that he holds a Canadian citizenship rather than an Indian one. The debate was only amplified by his conspicuous absence from polling booths when Mumbai went to polls on 29 April despite having recently conducted a “completely non-political” interview with Prime Minister Narendra Modi a few days prior.