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Hit and run case: Salman Khan walks free after 13 years
Posted On Dec 20 2015
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In what seemed to be a major relief for Salman Khan, the Bombay High Court observed that the Bollywood star could not be convicted on the basis of evidence that were produced in the 2002 hit-and-run case.
After a long legal battle, the verdict was finally announced today by Mumbai High Court in favour of Salman Khan.
The court was delivering judgement on the third day in a row on an appeal filed by Salman against the five-year sentence awarded to him by a Mumbai Sessions Court on May 6. After a protracted hearing process, a lower court found Khan guilty and sentenced him to five years imprisonment in May this year. “A wrong impression was created, that too by learned prosecutor in the Sessions Court that he was coming after 13 years”, the judge said. While dictating the verdict in the case pertaining to the actor’s appeal against his conviction, Bombay High Court Justice A.R. Joshi had mentioned that Kamaal Khan, who is now out of the country, should have been examined. “Salman is acquitted of all charges”.
Justice AR Joshi said the 49-year-old actor can not be convicted because the “prosecution has failed to prove the charges against Khan on all counts”.
Salman Khan was charged in the case of drunk driving and killing one person and leaving the four injured.
After Salman’s acquittal in the infamous hit-and-run case, micro-blogging site Twitter was flooded with jokes on the Bollywood actor. Prosecutor Pradeep Gharat, who led the prosecution in the case in the trial court, termed the HC verdict as “shocking”, while leading criminal lawyer Abha Singh said “the faith of common man in the judicial system has been shaken”. He also challenged the prosecution’s step of relying upon Patil’s statement in the trial court, saying this witness died and hence was not available for cross-examination.
The High Court questioned the account of Khan’s bodyguard, a key prosecution witness.
In its list of the best looking man in the world, People Magazine once placed him at no. 7.
