After a legal battle lasting 18 years, actor Salman Khan was on Wednesday acquitted in a criminal case accusing him of possessing and using weapons with expired licences, while hunting for endangered chinkaras and blackbucks near Jodhpur in 1998. He had been on location shooting for the movie Hum Saath Saath Hain .
Giving Mr. Khan the benefit of the doubt, Jodhpur Chief Judicial Magistrate Dalpat Singh Rajpurohit exonerated him of the charges framed under Sections 3/25 and 3/27 of the Indian Arms Act, 1959.
The Magistrate pronounced the judgment in a packed courtroom where Mr. Khan and his sister Alveera were present.
The court held in its 102-page verdict that the prosecution had failed to produce evidence and witnesses to prove its case “beyond reasonable doubt.”
The police and the Forest Department had claimed that Mr. Khan was in possession of a revolver and a rifle with expired licences, which the actor had used to hunt two blackbucks on October 1 and 2, 1998, in Kankani village on the outskirts of Jodhpur.
As the Magistrate read out a few paragraphs of the judgment, a huge crowd of fans who had gathered outside the court building cheered the verdict.
Mr. Khan later expressed gratitude to his fans and tweeted: “Thank you for all the support and good wishes.”
Defence lawyer Hastimal Saraswat, who had pleaded that the 51-year-old actor was innocent and had been framed, said justice had been rendered by the court. “Throughout the trial, we maintained that all evidence, witnesses and documents were fabricated. The court has reached the conclusion that the prosecution had failed to prove the charges.”
The court observed that the case against Mr. Khan should have been registered under Section 21 of the Arms Act dealing with the deposit of arms at a police station on their possession ceasing to be lawful. “The administrative authorities did not apply their mind while giving sanction for prosecution and the Investigating Officer was not serious about the probe,” the judgment said.
The State government is expected to take a decision shortly on filing an appeal. It has already moved a special leave petition in the Supreme Court against Mr. Khan’s acquittal by the Rajasthan High Court in July last year in two cases of poaching of chinkaras under the Wildlife Protection Act, 1972.
Elaborate security arrangements were made on the District Courts premises, with nearly 150 policemen deployed to keep the crowd under control. The policemen used mild force twice to clear the road in front of the court complex.
Mr. Khan is facing trial in the main case of alleged poaching of endangered blackbuck in Kankani village. He is due to appear along with Hum Saath Saath Hain co-stars Saif Ali Khan, Neelam, Tabu and Sonali Bendre for recording statements in the court next Wednesday.
