SC ISSUES NOTICE TO SALMAN
SEEKS REPLY ON APPEAL AGAINST ACQUITTAL
NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court on Friday asked Salman Khan for his response to Maharashtra Government’s appeal questioning the Bombay High Court verdict setting the Bollywood actor free of criminal charges in the 2002 hit-and-run case.
A bench of Justices JS Kehar and C Nagappan gave two options to the star —to either dispose the state appeal after getting a formal response from him or admit it and decide the question of law Maharashtra has raised on whether the HC should have discarded the evidence of Salman’s bod- yguard, Ravindra Himmatrao Patil, recorded before a magistrate before the case was remanded to the sessions court. The bodyguard could not give his statement afresh because he had died by the time the sessions court took over the trial.
If the appeal against Salman gets admitted or is granted leave it shall not be heard for the next five years.
In the top courts matters that get admitted are taken up year-wise. At present appeals granted leave in 2011-12 are being taken up. “If at all your case is of acquittal, it would be better you get it from the top court of this country. Rest is your option,” the bench told senior advocate Kapil Sibal who defended Salman saying the police evidence was not enough convict anyone.
“The judgement (of HC) could be overturned also,” the bench said. Sibal contested Maharashtra gover nment’s argument that the HC had erred in not considering the bodyguard’s statement.
He said Patil never spoke of Salman being drunk or on the wheels. “The police never produced any witness from Marriott hotel to prove Salman was on the wheels of his car,” Sibal told the bench.
Attor ney General Mukul Rohatgi, however, said Patil was not the only witness. “There are those who got injured during the accident,” he said.
The bench also issued notice to Salman on an appeal filed by the family of the one who died during the accident. It gave him six weeks to respond.