Salman Khan gets five years in Jail
“Apart from the district police, we have deployed emergency response team of the antiterror squad and special commandos to secure the court during the case,” said Jodhpur (East) deputy commissioner of police Amandeep Singh Kapoor.
Under Section 51 of the Wildlife Protection Act, Khan was charged in two separate cases for allegedly poaching three chinkara, an Indian variety of the gazelle -- two in Bhawad village on September 26, 1998 and one in Mathania on September 28, 1998. The Bishnoi community lodged a police complaint and 10 days later, he was arrested but released on bail in five days. In July 2016, he was acquitted by the Rajasthan High Court in both the cases.
Khan was charged in an unrelated hit-and-run case in 2002 in Mumbai for allegedly killing a homeless person sleeping on the footpath. He was acquitted by the Bombay high court in 2015.
In October 1998, a complaint was lodged by the forest department and Khan was booked under sections 325 and 327 of the Arms Act for allegedly possessing and using a 0.22 rifle and a 0.32 revolver with an expired license.
Allegedly, he used these weapons to kill the two blackbucks in Kankani village. On January 18, 2017, he was acquitted in the case.
“We respect the decision of the Hon’ble Court,” Khan’s lawyer Anand Desai said in a statement.
“While we are studying the judgement, it just came as a surprise, as the entire investigation and facts of this case were the same as those for which Salman has been acquitted by the Hon’ble High Court of Rajasthan in two cases, and even by the Hon’ble CJM in the Arms Act matter for the alleged offence on the very same night as is the subject matter of the present case. Also, in the present case the Hon’ble Court has acquitted all the five co-accused which would imply that Salman was out hunting alone in the middle of the night in a remote area outside Jodhpur. We have preferred an appeal to the Hon’ble Sessions Court and applied for an urgent hearing today. The Hon’ble Sessions Court will hear the appeal for suspension of the sentence / bail at 1030 tomorrow.”
Predictably, Bollywood and Khan’s fans on social media were upset by the verdict.
“Of one thing I am dead sure..@beingsalmankhan would NEVER EVER harm any animal. He loves them too much. The real culprit should be exposed. 20 years is too long to bear someone else’s cross,” actor Simi Garewal, who has also hosted TV shows on film stars’ lives, tweeted.
The actor’s fan clubs across India posted supportive messages on Facebook: “Standing with Salman Khan,” read a message. “Keep praying, he is not guilty”; “Damn the judicial system!”; Allah, please help!”
Animal rights activists hailed the ruling.
“This signals that nobody is above the law, that is the strongest signal. He has killed a Schedule I species, he broke the law. I don’t think he is being made a scapegoat, nobody is above the law,” Belinda Wright, executive director of the Wildlife Protection Society of India, said.
About R500 crore is riding on Khan, among the biggest stars in the country, according to one trade estimate.
The filming of his next Eid release, Race 3, has almost been completed and other films such as Bharat and Dabangg 3 are set to go on the floors soon. On top of that, Kick 2 has already been announced, and Salman’s TV show, 10 Ka Dum, is scheduled to go on air in a few days.
Khan’s film production company is also producing Loveratri, which marks the debut of the star’s brother-in-law, Aayush Sharma.
Trade analyst Taran Adarsh said, “It’s too early to comment, but, of course, if Salman indeed ends up going to jail, it will be a huge shock for everyone. Besides his own films, a big superstar like him has a lot riding on him vis-à-vis the entire industry.
After all, his films are always among the biggest money-spinners, so the overall business will surely be badly affected.”