Salman Khan freed in arms case

Risingbd Desk: Indian movie star Salman Khan was acquitted on Wednesday in a case linked to the alleged killing of black bucks 18 years ago.

Salman Khan had pleaded "not guilty" to charges of violating the law by keeping unlicensed weapons and using them. The court let him off giving him the benefit of doubt.

 

The 51-year-old arrived in Jodhpur city with his sister Alvira on Tuesday evening.

 

The case involves the killing of deer allegedly when Salman Khan and his co-stars Saif Ali Khan, Sonali Bendre, Neelam and Tabu, were shooting for a film in the forests near Jodhpur in 1998.

Over the years, Salman Khan has faced multiple cases for allegedly killing two chinkaras and two black bucks on three hunts.

 

In 2007, he spent a week in jail in Jodhpur before being granted bail.  

 

Salman Khan's lawyer had argued there was no evidence that he was carrying firearms, and that he was only carrying air guns. The actor had also said he was framed.

 

He has already been acquitted by the Rajasthan High Court in two cases related to the killing of endangered chinkara deer. That verdict has been challenged by the state government before the Supreme Court.

 

A lower court had earlier handed the actor a one year jail term and five-year term in the two cases.

 

Another case involving the alleged poaching of two black bucks is still being heard.

 

The other actors have also been asked to appear in court on January 25 to record their statements in the poaching case.

 

In March, the Bombay High Court suspended the actor's five-year prison sentence in a hit-and-run case. He was convicted for killing a homeless man with his SUV on a night out drinking in September 2002.

 

Salman Khan is one of the most popular and successful stars in the Hindi film industry, with his movies mostly crossing the "100-crore" mark.

Source: Agencies

risingbd/Jan 18, 2017/Mukul