Mumbai: Bollywood star Salman Khan was on Wednesday sentenced to five years in prison after being found guilty by a court in Mumbai of killing a homeless man in a 2002 hit-and-run crash after a night out drinking. While convicting Khan, sessions court judge DW Deshpande said all the charges against the star, including culpable homicide not amounting to murder, had been proved.
The judge said 49-year-old Khan was driving the car at the time of the accident and the defence’s contention that his driver Ashok Singh was at the wheel was not probable. Khan, wearing a white shirt and blue jeans, broke down on hearing the verdict and witnesses said there were tears in his eyes. Khan’s family members too were upset and his two sisters also broke down in the courtroom.
The judge then heard arguments on the quantum of sentence and Khan’s lawyer sought a lesser sentence in view of his humanitarian work. He said the actor had paid Rs 19 lakh as compensation to the victims and would do more if ordered. We are not running away from responsibility,” the counsel said. Khan himself pleaded with the judge for a lesser sentence. The prosecution sought the maximum punishment.
Khan has starred in more than 100 films and television shows since his first hit, Maine Pyar Kiya, in the 1980s. The muscular actor is no stranger to controversy off screen and in 1998, he spent more than a week in prison for allegedly killing endangered blackbucks. He is facing two other cases in Rajasthan for allegedly poaching endangered animals and possessing arms without a valid licence.
Bureau Report
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