E-commerce major Snapdeal has decided against renewing actor Aamir Khan’s endorsement contract, which runs out later this month, the Times of India reported. The contract was extendable by a year. While representatives from the firm did not comment on why this move was made, there were indications that Snapdeal is looking to move away from big-ticket endorsements and focus on other aspects of business instead. The actor has not responded to development yet.

Industry analysts believe the move could be linked to the controversy Khan was embroiled in, when comments he had made in November about the ongoing intolerance debate were widely misinterpreted. Khan had said that his wife Kiran Rao had asked whether as religious minorities they were safe in the country. This led to a huge uproar, with Khan being accused of running away and being unpatriotic, though the actor insisted he never planned to leave India.

The fallout from the controversy had affected Snapdeal after many users started unsubscribing from their app and leaving bad reviews and ratings for it on the Google Play Store, where apps are available for download. The company had distanced itself from Khan’s views and stopped using him in their ads, even though he had featured widely in them before.