Salman case: Victim’s family seeks compensation

The widow and son of the victim mowed down allegedly by actor Salman Khan in 2002 hit-and-run case, moved the Supreme Court on Wednesday, seeking reversal of the Bombay High Court order acquitting the Bollywood superstar. Nurulla has two daughters and one son. The Apex Court is also hearing a similar appeal filed by the Maharashtra state government which had challenged the Bombay HC order.

“Court erred in dismissing the testimony of the prosecution witnesses on the basis of minor inconsistencies”, the plea said adding that the high court had also ignored the evidence that the actor was drunk during the accident.

The development comes even as the Supreme Court prepares to hear the Maharashtra government’s special leave petition against Salman Khan on 12 February.

The latest challenge to the 50-year-old actor’s acquittal by the Bombay HC comes from the son of Noorullah Khan, who was killed in the accident. The petitioners, claiming to be daily wage-earners, said the family has been leading a miserable life since the death of its sole bread-earner and the court should direct compensation for their loss.

The petition said that the High Court has made a “serious error” in reversing the judgment of the trial court, which had sentenced Khan to five years in jail.

On September 28, 2002, Shaikh Noorulla Shafik was killed on the spot when the actor’s Land Cruiser crashed into men sleeping on a pavement outside a bakery in Bandra. The Sessions Court in Mumbai had found Khan guilty for various charges of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), including culpable homicide not amounting to murder.