Screengrab from video | Photo Credit: Times Now

Mumbai: Veteran actor Naseeruddin Shah has sparked a controversy by saying that he is worried about the safety of his children in today’s India. In an apparent reference to the recent violence sparked by the discovery of cattle carcasses in Uttar Pradesh’s Bulandshahr, Shah said: "We have already witnessed that the death of a cow has more significance (in today's India) than that of a police officer."

Inspector Subodh Kumar Singh and a civilian, identified as Sumit, were killed in the shocking mob violence that was incited by allegations of cow slaughter on December 3.

In a YouTube video, Shah is seen as saying: "I am worried for my kids...if tomorrow, a mob surrounds them and asks which religion they belong to, they will have no answer," said Shah, while adding he and his wife Ratna chose not to give religious education to their children.

"I believe that being good or evil has nothing to do with religion. We taught them (children) about good and bad."

Shah further said that "poison" has spread in the Indian society and it will be very difficult to "capture this djinn back into the bottle". He added that there is a full exemption from punishment for those who take the law into their own hands.

"These matters do not scare me, but make me angry. And I want that every right-thinking person should feel angry, not scared. This is our home. Who dares to evict us from here."

Shah's comments were put on YouTube by Karwan-e-Mohabbat India (Caravan of Love).