All hell has broken loose on Ek Se Badhkar Ek with judge Abhijeet Bhattacharya walking out of this Zee TV reality show. Abhijeet took this step in the aftermath of Pakistani singer Mussarat Abbas being given a wild card mid-way through the competition.

A furious Abhijeet says, “I’m opting out of the show on ideological grounds. There are hundreds of Indian talented singers who wait in queue for days but yet leave empty-handed. If you ought to bring back someone then why not recall talented singers like Harpreet and Emon.”

Zee TV’s Business Head Tarun Mehra says, “We thoroughly respect Abhijeet’s ideology. We haven’t pinned on any replacement as we’re still hopeful that this issue can be resolved. Probably, we may have to go with just one judge in the next couple of episodes.

While Tarun Mehra remained optimistic, Manish Joshi, Associate Creative Director, UTV, didn’t hesitate in saying “We respect his ideology but the show is bigger than any individual. After all, it’s beamed through 156 countries. In case there’s no agreement with Abhijeet , then we’ll have to look for a replacement .