Blackbuck poaching case: Salman Khan, other accused actors in court, verdict shortly.

April 5, 2018 Shining India Entertainment 0

Blackbuck poaching case: Salman Khan, other accused actors in court, verdict shortly.Jodhpur: A Jodhpur court will on Thursday pronounce its verdict in the 1998 blackbuck poaching case in which actor Salman Khan is an accused. Final arguments of the case were completed in the trial court on March 28, after which Chief Judicial Magistrate Dev Kumar Khatri had reserved the judgment. Salman has been accused of killing two blackbucks on October 2, 1998 in Jodhpur during the shooting of the movie “Hum Saath Saath Hain”. Apart from Salman, actors Saif Ali Khan, Tabu Sonali Bendre and Neelam, are also accused in the poaching case. All actors are in Jodhpur court for the pronouncement of the verdict. 

All the five actors accused in the blackbuck poaching case – Salman, Saif, Tabu, Neelam, Sonali Bendre – have reached court. The process of the hearing in court has begun. 

Dressed in a black shirt, faded denim jeans, actor Salman Khan has reached the court. Actors Saif Ali Khan, Neelam with her husband Samir Soni are also in court. 

Salman Khan has left for court, hearing in the case is set to begin shortly. If convicted, Salman faces a maximum term of six years and a minimum of 1 year in jail. Salman’s sisters, who left the hotel before him, have reached the court for the hearing. 

Local lawyers in Jodhpur court have complained that Salman and other actors are being given VIP treatment. The lawyers have also complained that their entry to the court is being barred due to the treatment being given to the actors.

Salman’s sisters Arpita and Alvira Khan have left the hotel to reach the court. Salman is also likely to leave his hotel shortly. The distance between the hotel and the court will take nearly 10-15 minutes to cover.

Salman Khan is staying in Taj Vivanta hotel in Jodhpur. There is heavy police deployment outside the hotel too. SP Swati Sharma is monitoring the law and order situation in the area.

Earlier in the day, Salman’s father Salim Khan went on a morning walk where he refused to take questions on the verdict. He said that he will react after the vedict is announced. On Wednesday, Salman’s sister Arpita Khan and actor Katrina Kaif went to the Siddhivinayak temple in Mumbai.

For Saif Ali Khan, his film titled Baazaar co-starring Chitrangada Singh and Radhika Apte is slated to release soon. As per reports, he also has a film titled Jugabandi with Parineeti Chopra. Read details of his upcoming movies here.

If the actors are convicted in this case, the producers of their upcoming films may face a tough time completing the projects that are already in the pipeline featuring these stars. The stakes are pretty high for Salman. He is shooting for Remo D’Souza’s Race 3, a film which is scheduled to hit theatres on June 15 on the occasion of Eid. He also has Atul Agnihotri’s Bharat to be directed by Ali Abbas Zafar in his kitty. After Bharat, Salman will begin shooting for the third instalment of blockbuster franchise Dabangg co-starring Sonakshi Sinha. Read details of his upcoming movies here.

The verdict is likely to be announced at around 11:30 am today. Salman is also likely to reach the Jodhpur court shortly. Elaborate security arrangements are in place in and outside the court premises ahead of the verdict.

Salman’s counsel also claimed that the prosecution engaged in tampering and fabricating evidence as well as roping in fake witnesses to prove its case. “It even failed to prove that the blackbucks were killed by gunshots. Hence, such investigation cannot be trusted,” Salman’s counsel had said.

Salman’s lawyer HM Saraswat has arrived in court. He has denied all allegations against the actor saying that there were several loopholes in the prosecution’s story. He had also claimed that the prosecution has failed to prove its case beyond any doubt.

Heavy police deployment outside the Jodhpur court ahead of the verdict.

Public Prosecutor Bhawani Singh Bhati had said that all of them were in a Gypsy car that night, with Salman in the driving seat. He also said that when Salman spotted a herd of black bucks, he shot at and killed two of them. But on being spotted and chased, they fled from the spot leaving the dead animals there. The Public Prosecutor had said that there was adequate evidence against them.

Salman Khan is accused of killing two blackbucks in Bhagoda ki Dhani in Kankani village near Jodhpur on October 2, 1998, during the shooting of the movie ‘Hum Saath Saath Hain’. He is facing charges under Section 51 of the Wildlife (Protection) Act for which the maximum punishment is six years. The other actors have been charged under Section 51 read with Section 149 (unlawful assembly) of the Indian Penal Code.

The judge as well as the main witness in the case, have reached the Jodhpur court. Salman is expected to leave his hotel for the court at 10 am. The hearing in the case will begin at 10:30 am today.

Soon after arriving in Jodhpur, actor Saif courted controversy when a video of him speaking rudely to his driver went viral. In the video, Saif can be heard using rough language and asking his driver to roll up the car’s window-panes and reverse as a crowd gathers around his vehicle. He was heard saying: “Bhaisaab, sheesha upar karo aur reverse karo, varna padhegi ek.”

Salman Khan and all the other actors accused in the case reached Jodhpur on Wednesday for the verdict that is likely to be pronounced today. The 52-year-old actor arrived from Mumbai in a chartered flight.

Bureau Report

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