The verdict in the blackbuck poaching case against Salman Khan, Saif Ali Khan, Sonali Bendre, Neelam and Tabu will be announced by a Jodhpur court on Thursday.
The actors are accused of killing two blackbucks in the Kankani village near Jodhpur in 1998 while shooting for their film, Hum Saath Saath Hain.
Salman is charged under section 9/51 of the Wildlife Protection Act for poaching an animal, for which, the minimum imprisonment is one year and maximum is six years.
Saif, Tabu, Neelam and Sonali are charged with abetting poaching (section 9/51 read with 52 of the Wildlife Protection Act) and illegal assembly (section 149 of the Indian Penal Code). The punishment under this is the same as that for poaching.
Here are live updates of the blackbuck poaching case:
April 5, 10:18 am: Salman Khan’s lawyer HM Saraswat has arrived in the Jodhpur court as the hearing is expected to commence at 11:15 am.
April 5, 10 am: Saif Ali Khan’s lawyer Krishan Vyas told TIMES NOW that “if the actors are found guilty, then there is equal punishment for all. Maximum punishment will be for six years and minimum one year.”
April 5, 9:49 am: Judge Dev Kumar Khatri arrives at the court for the hearing for blackbuck case in Rajasthan.
April 5, 9 am: News agency ANI reports police personnel have been deployed outside Jodhpur court.
Salman’s immensely successful Bollywood career has been marked by court cases, including the blackbuck case and three others.
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Here are the details of all the court cases in which the actor has been named.
1. Blackbuck case (1998):
Salman Khan faces a court verdict on Thursday for allegedly hunting two blackbucks during the outdoor shoot for Sooraj Barjatya film, Hum Saath Saath Hain, in Rajasthan almost 20 years ago. Saif Ali Khan, Sonali Bendre, Tabu and Neelam are accused of accompanying the actor and being present in the vehicle when Salman shot the blackbucks in Kankani village near Jodhpur.
2. Salman Khan and the other actors are facing charges under the Wildlife (Protection) Act.
The punishment for all of them, if found guilty, will be the same. The maximum punishment is six years while the minimum sentence is for one year.
3. The alleged shooting took place near a village of Bishnois, a community that protects blackbucks.
According to the villagers, they heard the gunshots and found the deers’ carcasses. They claim they even chased the vehicles in which the actors were present but they drove away. Defence claims there is no forensic evidence that the deer were killed by guns as no bullets were found.
Arms Act case (1998):
The police filed the case against Salman in October 1998 for possessing and using unlicensed .22 rifle and .32 US-made revolver and using them for allegedly poaching the blackbuck. The chief judicial magistrate acquitted the actor on January 18, 2017, saying the prosecution had failed to prove the charges against him.
4. Chinkara poaching case (1998):
Two separate cases were registered in 1998 against Salman under Section 51 of the Wildlife Protection Act, after he allegedly poached three chinkaras – two in Bhawad village and one in Mathania village in September during the shoot of the same film.
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5. In 2006, Salman was convicted by the trial court and handed sentences of one and five years respectively for allegedly poaching the three chinkaras.
6. However, he was acquitted in both the cases in 2017 by Rajasthan high court.
7. The high court said that there was no evidence to prove that the animals who were found dead were shot by the actor’s gun.
8. The Rajasthan government filed an appeal in the Supreme Court against the HC’s decision of acquitting the actor.
9. Salman was jailed twice in these cases – in April 2006 and in August 2007.
10. Hit-and-run case:
The Bombay High Court acquitted Salman of all criminal charges in a hit-and-run case in 2015, months after he had been found guilty by a trial court.