Mumbai: Over 13 years after his auto plowed through a group of homeless people sleeping on a pavement, killing one and wounding four, superstar Salman Khan on Thursday walked free after the Bombay High Court acquitted him of “all charges”, overturning the trial court order sentencing him for five years. The state government said it will examine the verdict and take a decision on approaching the apex court.
Advertisement
Mumbai: In a huge relief of his lifetime, Bollywood hero Salman Khan is acquitted of all criminal charges against him in the 2002 hit-and-run case.
The prosecution opposed Salman’s plea and justified the invocation of culpable homicide charge against the actor saying he had driven the auto in a rash and negligent manner under the influence of liquor in September 2002, when he met with a mishap.
Though there were many pieces of evidence against Salman, and the driver/ bodyguard who lodged the complaint is dead, High Court said that they can not convict Salman without any reliable evidence.
Patil had in his FIR only said Salman was speeding and had disobeyed his (Patil’s) request to slow down.
“The prosecution failed to establish its case on all charges”, Justice A.R. Joshi told a packed courtroom, adding that Khan had been acquitted.
The appeals judge said prosecutors had failed to prove that Khan was driving the vehicle or that he was intoxicated, citing “glaring anomalies” in evidence collected by Mumbai police investigators, including blood samples and receipts from a hotel bar where the actor spent the evening with friends before the collision.
Salman Khan appeared in the court for pronouncement of judgement in his appeal. The truth, however, has to be probed before court of law and established on the principles of evidence and cardinal principle of jurisprudence.
Other Twitter users were less kind, suggesting there was one rule for the rich and another for the poor in India, lamenting that little attention was being given to the victim. Khan has had two hit films in 2015.
Advertisement
On hearing the verdict, Salman broke down. The police have made special arrangements for Salman to attend the court before the final verdict was announced.
