Bollywood superstar Salman Khan on Friday recorded his statement in a Jodhpur court regarding the blackbuck poaching case and said that the blackbuck had a natural death and he was not driving the jeep.
Salman Khan was asked 68 questions. He also claimed not guilty and also added that the blackbuck had a ‘natural death’. He also claimed that only the forest forensic report was correct. He also denied going out that night.
“I do not know, I was not there. This case is a cooked-up case,” replied Salman when asked who was driving the jeep. The actor said that the forest department tried to frame him in the case to gain publicity.
“Khan has not committed any crime. After the film shooting, he used to remain in the hotel. He has been framed in the case and we would produce the evidence in favour of his innocence on the next date,” said his counsel Hastimal Saraswat.
Along with Salman, actors Saif Ali Khan, Sonali Bendre, Tabu and Neelam are also accused of poaching the blackbucks while shooting for the film ‘Hum Saath Saath Hain’ near Kankani village. Along with the actor, Dushyant Singh, a local who is accused of helping the actors hunt, was also present.
The accused appeared before the court of the chief judicial magistrate to record their statements.
The sun city attracted rains on Republic Day but fans of the star, their enthusiasm un-dampened, may line up the road outside the court of the chief judicial magistrate DS Rajpurohit, near Paota chowk on Friday. It is the last pending trial that Salman Khan, who has four acquittals so far, faces.
The next hearing in the case was fixed on February 15.
Mr. Khan was acquitted on January 18 in a criminal case accusing him of possessing and using weapons with an expired licence while hunting for endangered chinkaras and blackbucks at Kankani village and elsewhere near Jodhpur.
Following protests by the local Bishnoi community, a case was filed against Salman Khan and other actors, besides a local named Dushyant Singh.
