An Indian court has sentenced Bollywood star Salman Khan to five years in jail for killing a man & injuring 3 more in a 2002 hit-and-run driving incident in Mumbai.
The court has pronounced its verdict today maintaining Salman Khan guilty for the culpable homicide in the 2002 hit and run case which resulted the death of one person & left 4 seriously injured. The court has observed that when the incident took place Salman Khan was driving the vehicle under the influence of alcohol. Khan had said his driver was behind the wheel, but the judge said the actor was driving the car and was under the influence of alcohol at the time.
Salman was present in the court at the time of pronouncement of verdict by the judge he swiftly moved the application for the bail at the Bombay High Court which granted him the interim bail till May 8 to hear his appeal against the conviction. Justice Abhay Thipsay granted interim bail to the actor on the grounds that the accused had not been given a copy of the conviction order by the session’s court. “The urgency in the matter is that the appellant (Salman) who was on bail throughout the trial is likely to be taken into custody today. However, the copy of the order has not been delivered yet,” Justice Thipsay observed.
According to the available information the guilty verdict gave a huge setback to Khan as he could have been jailed for 10 years. The actor is a big bollywood star icon in India acted in more than 80 Hindi films, some of his films, including Dabangg, Ready, Bodyguard, Ek Tha Tiger, Maine Pyar Kiya and Hum Aap Ke Hain Kaun, have been the huge commercial hits.
On the day of verdict actor was present for in the court while his family, fans and friends were praying his acquittal, Judge D W Deshpande found him guilty on the charge of culpable homicide “You were driving the car; you were under the influence of alcohol,” he told the actor as soon as the court proceedings began. Following the verdict the lawyers from both sides argued over his punishment, Salman who was dressed in a white shirt was looking very calm and relaxed. His friends and family present in the court were expecting that he would get a jail term of 3 years or less, but when judge sentenced him to 5 years imprisonment, Salman’s expression changed instantly. His sister who was accompanied him to the court was seen consoling him at this harsh moment.
The court had found 49-year-old actor guilty of negligent driving and causing grievous harm to the victims and given him separate terms for each offence, but defence lawyers have clarified that all the sentences would run concurrently. Several of his Bollywood colleagues spoke out in his support and expressed their sympathies. Actress Hema Malini said she was praying for him. If the actor is put behind bars, it will affect several high-profile film projects he is involved in at the moment.
The case has gripped Bollywood and India for years in which Salman’s Toyota Land Cruiser had hit the American Express bakery on the night of 28 September 2002, in Bandra area of Mumbai. The vehicle ran over five people sleeping on the street, killing 38-year-old Noor Ullah Khan instantly and seriously injuring four others. The prosecution remained stiff on their stand that Salman Khan was driving the car under the influence of alcohol to which Salman had denied saying that he was neither drunk nor driving the vehicle himself but witnesses disagreed. A constable attached to Khan’s security detail said in a statement to the police that the “drunk” actor had lost control of the car. The policeman died in 2007 of tuberculosis. In April, Khan’s driver told the court that he had crashed the car after a tyre burst but the court did not accept that version.
THE PROCESS OF JUSTICE
- September 2002: Salman Khan’s car runs over five people sleeping on a Mumbai street, killing a homeless man and injuring four others
- October 2002: Khan charged with culpable homicide not amounting to murder – arrested but granted bail
- May 2003: Court rejects his plea to drop culpable homicide charge
- June 2003: Bombay high court drops culpable homicide charge; actor is then tried for rash and negligent driving
- October 2007: Prime witness, a constable who served in his security detail, dies
- March 2015: Khan tells the court he was not drunk and his driver was behind the wheel
- May 2015: Khan found guilty for Culpable Homicide, sent to jail for five years
[su_highlight background=”#160ce1″ color=”#fafcfc”]Salman has been convicted under following Sections.[/su_highlight]
- Section 304 A of the Indian Penal Code (rash and negligent driving)
- Section 279 (rash driving)
- Section 337 (causing minor injuries)
- Section 338 (causing major injuries)
- Section 427 (negligence) in connection with the case.
- Under Motor Vehicle Act Sections 34 (a), (b) read with 181 (driving vehicle in contravention of rules)
- Section 185 (driving at great speed after consuming alcohol).
ALSO READ: HOW THE HIT-AND-RUN-CASE UNFOLDED
Accused(Salman) entitled to hv copy of full judgment which wasnt provided,HC rightly gave interim bail: Gaurav Bhatia pic.twitter.com/9VqiXND0Au
— ANI (@ANI_news) May 6, 2015
#SalmanGuilty II @ananyadg asks @FarahKhanAli a direct question on her tweet @IBNLive, Click the link & listen in https://t.co/8IkhbZD64R — Joel Samuel (@joel__Samuel) May 6, 2015
Salman’s Friends @abhijeetsinger, @FarahKhanAli blame people sleeping on roads #SalmanVerdict http://t.co/zNLyFUfkQr pic.twitter.com/hbUKiCOC9I
— IE entertainment (@ieEntertainment) May 6, 2015
Fans gathered at bandra those are his @BeingSalmanKhan ‘s loyal fans take that haters. #IStandWithSalmanKhan pic.twitter.com/5Uy1rRY9tR — Forever Salman! (@JerseyNo27) May 6, 2015
Photos: Salman convicted, gets bail #SalmanJailed http://t.co/9tOGnIcwq0 pic.twitter.com/KcUMDeS75K
— India Today (@IndiaToday) May 6, 2015
Source: PTI, BBC News
