Bollywood Actor Salman Likely to Get Reprieve in Hit-and-run Case

Salman may get a reprieve in hit-and-run case as HC observed, witness who said Khan was driving the SUV when it ran over people, was not reliable.
Bollywood hero Salman Khan. |AFP
Bollywood hero Salman Khan. |AFP

MUMBAI: In what could be an indication that actor Salman Khan may get a reprieve in the hit-and-run case against him, the Bombay High Court on Wednesday observed that a witness, who had stated that Khan was at the wheel when his SUV ran over people sleeping on a pavement, was not wholly reliable.

The court has raised doubts on whether the tyre of Khan’s SUV burst before the accident or after. The Bombay High Court is likely to deliver its judgment on Thursday. Khan had appealed against his conviction in the 2002 case in which the Sessions Court had found him guilty of killing one person with his SUV after a night out drinking.

The High Court  has questioned the credibility of Khan’s bodyguard, the late Ravindra Patil, a key prosecution witness who had said that the actor was driving drunk and had ignored his warnings repeatedly.

“If the witness is partly reliable then corroboration is required. Ravindra Patil cannot be considered as a wholly reliable witness,” the HC said. It also said that the Sessions Court had made a mistake by admitting Patil’s statement. The HC also said that singer Kamaal Khan, who was also in Salman’s car at the time of accident, should have been examined. The court earlier had dismissed Khan’s plea to make Kamaal a witness in the case.

The HC earlier had questioned the manner in which Khan’s blood sample was collected and analysed. It had observed that requisite and necessary care was not taken while taking the blood sample. The court also observed that there was a discrepancy about the total quantity of blood extracted. While 6ml blood was extracted, only 4ml of blood reached the chemical analyst. “In view of the above, evidence of the chemical analyst is of no importance,” the HC observed.

While the blood sample was taken on September 28 it was sent to the chemical analyst’s office on September 30 as the office was shut for the weekend.

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