Earlier today, a Sessions court in Jodhpur adjourned the hearing in the 1998 blackbuck poaching case till July 17th whereby actor Salman Khan had filed a plea challenging his 5-year jail term ordered by the trial court.
The 52-year old actor reached Jodhpur on Sunday and then appeared before the judge on Monday to comply with the orders given by the Jodhpur court while granting bail on April 7. Here he was accompanied by sister Alvira Khan, friend Baba Siddique, and some lawyers.
While hearing the plea, District and Sessions Judge Chandra Kumar Songara adjourned the hearing when the defence counsel Mahesh Bora demanded for some time to begin his arguments.
Back in April, Salman spent two nights in jail after being given a 5-year term imprisonment after which he was granted bail and was released on April 7. In the order granting bail, the then District and Sessions Judge Ravindra Kumar Joshi had agreed to suspend the actor’s sentence for a month and had asked Khan to appear in the court on May 7. He was also barred from traveling abroad without seeking permission of the court.
Interestingly, in an order on the late evening of April 6, Judge Ravindra Kumar Joshi was transferred to Sirohi as part of a reshuffle while Judge Chandra Kumar Songara was appointed in his place.
As of now, the next hearing in the case has been adjourned until July 17 and the actor has been permitted to travel aboard from May 25 to July 10. During this time period, he is scheduled to visit countries like US, Canada, and Nepal to shoot for his upcoming films.
Others accused in the 1998 case including Tabu, Saif, Sonali, and Neelam had been acquitted by the court giving “benefit of doubt” while Salman was found guilty in the blackbuck poaching. Apart from this, the Maharashtra government’s plea against the actor’s acquittal in the 2002 hit-and-run case is also pending before the Supreme Court.
