THE third series of Citizen Khan continues to split opinions.

When the first series hit our screens it seemed to garner a wide range of comment within the Asian community and beyond.

The cast are not the butt of the criticism but more the writing. The characters on Citizen Khan are quite lovable and on the whole we like the idea that there is this dysfunctional Asian family on TV.

Like it or not, it is a sitcom that transcends social divides and that is not always an easy thing to do in the present climate where almost anything race related becomes an attack on freedom and democracy.

However, if the first couple of episodes of the third series are anything to go by the script has lost its spark.

This is a BBC sitcom like many other average efforts that have made their appearances on the channel. So, to criticise the programme as some have done so vocally on Twitter is a little unfair.

BBC family sitcoms are not always going to come in the form of Fawlty Towers. There have been many over the years that have proved to be successful because they can be watched by the whole family.

Some Muslims have been highly critical because on the one side we want to see something cutting edge and then also we want things to portray ‘us Muslims in a good light’. You can’t have both. But in this case we have neither.

And then you have non-Muslims who find the programme ‘cringe worthy’ and nauseating at times.

We must remember that less than 10 percent of the population watching this are from an ethnic background. The vast majority of the viewers who may tune in do not fall into this bracket.

There is one huge danger though. The novelty of being the only Asians on TV soon runs out. So, there is a real need to ensure you are there for other than that very reason.

I would sense the BBC are playing it safe in many ways. But would we able to handle something bolder?