A tense actor heaved a sigh of relief when sis rushed to him in the evening with HC bail order
Finally, the verdict in the 13-year-old hit-and-run case against Salman Khan was delivered on Wednesday: the actor is guilty. The court, presided over by judge DW Deshpande, sentenced the actor to five years of rigorous imprisonment along with a fine of Rs29,000. Although the actor was held guilty on all the six counts, the sentences will run concurrently, the court ruled.
Around 11.15 in the morning, the actor was driven to the court by Ashok Singh, the driver who had claimed towards the fag end of the trial that he was the one who was driving the SUV when the accident took place.
It was a packed courtroom, and the actor somehow negotiated his way to the witness box. The court then informed him that he is held guilty in the prime section of culpable homicide not amounting to murder as the prosecution has been successful in proving that he was at the wheel drunk.
Salman took the verdict without betraying any emotion. Soon, defence advocate Srikant Shivade initiated the arguments on the quantum of sentence. He said the actor has contributed a lot to society through his NGO "Being Human". The advocate also claimed that Salman was suffering from a medical condition and imprisonment at this stage would have an adverse impact on him. Shivade then said his client had signed a few projects which he needed to complete and pleaded with the court to award him the minimum punishment.
It was opposed by special public prosecutor Pradeep Gharat. He said the accused was a leading actor and if he was held guilty for his wrongdoings, then a precedent would be set. Gharat urged the court to award him the maximum punishment.
After hearing the arguments, the court sentenced Salman to five years of rigorous imprisonment under the charges of culpable homicide not amounting to murder. The court made it clear that since all the charges against him had been proved, a fine of Rs29,000 was imposed on him.
At this point, Gharat approached the actor and said, "Salman, I'm sorry, but I couldn't help it." However, the actor complimented Gharat for his efforts. Later, as per procedure, the police took Salman's fingerprints.
In the meantime, Salmans defence advocates and sister Alvira rushed to the Bombay high court to seek a temporary relief against the Session's court order. They succeeded. Salman heaved a sigh of relief when, in the evening, Alvira rushed to him with the High court's order granting him a two-day interim bail.
Speaking to dna, Shivade said, "We had approached the high court to challenge the sentencing. The court has kept the matter for hearing on May 8 and till then it has granted him a temporary bail. On May 8, we shall argue on our appeal."
Meanwhile, the sessions court rejected the application filed by lawyer Abha Singh in which she had requested the court to initiate a perjury trial against the police for allegedly delaying the case by calling wrong witnesses.
The court slapped a fine of Rs10,000 on Singh for wasting its time. The other application of perjury, which the prosecution had filed against Salman's driver Ashok Singh for lying on oath, was dismissed by the court on the ground that it was not maintainable.
Break-up of punishment
Culpable homicide not amounting to murder: Five years of rigorous imprisonment along with a fine of Rs25,000.
Causing grievous hurt by act of endangering life: One year of simple imprisonment along with a fine of Rs500
Causing hurt by act of endangering life: Simple imprisonment for three months and a fine of Rs500.
Driving without licence: Two months of simple imprisonment along with a fine of Rs500.
Two sections under Motor vehicle act: Two months simple imprisonment along with a fine of Rs500 under one section, while six months of simple imprisonment and a fine of Rs2,000 in the other.
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