All the basic questions you might have about Salman Khan’s sentencing and legal options answered.
1. What happened in court today?
Bollywood actor Salman Khan was held guilty and then sentenced to 5 years in jail in the 2002 hit-and-run case in which one person died and 4 others were injured.
The actor was convicted under several charges including Culpable Homicide Not Amounting to Murder and Driving Under the Influence of Liquor.
Salman Khan was found guilty on all charges and sentenced to 5 years in prison.
2. Will Salman Khan get bail?
The offences under which he has been convicted are bailable. In fact Salman Khan has got 2-day interim bail, so he doesn’t have to go to jail yet.
His actual bail plea will be heard on Friday.
Earlier in the evening, the actor was given interim bail on the grounds that the full court order from the judgement had not been handed over yet to the High Court. Since this will take 2 days, the High Court cannot take a decision on Salman’s bail application till Friday, till which time he has been given interim bail.
3. When will Salman Khan go to jail?
For the moment, Salman Khan is not going to jail. At least till Friday. On Friday the High Court will decide upon his bail application. His legal team has applied for bail on the grounds of ill-health which they say will deteriorate if he remains in jail. Salman is reportedly suffering from trigeminal neuralgia, a nerve disorder.
4. What did Salman Khan do or say in court today?
After pronouncing the guilty verdict, the Court asked Khan what he had to say. The actor continued to deny charges levelled against him, stating that he was not driving the car, a stand he has been taking since his trial began. According to news sources he also became teary-eyed upon hearing the guilty verdict.
5. The actor’s driver had claimed during the trial that it was him who was behind the wheel on that fateful day. What did the judge say?
The judge said that all charges had been “proved” and upheld the prosecution’s contention that Salman Khan was at the wheel of his Toyota Land Cruiser when it ran over five people sleeping on the pavement outside American Express bakery in Mumbai.
You were driving the car. Not probable that Ashok Singh (driver) was driving.
–Judge DW Deshpande
6. What are Salman Khan’s legal options now?
Now, Salman’s lawyers will have to get their appeal ready before May 9, when the High Court goes for an extended vacation.
Depending on the outcome of his bail plea, Salman Khan has a variety of options, including appealing the verdict of the sessions court at the Bombay High Court.
7. What did the victim’s family have to say?
The family of the victim who died in the accident told DNA that they were happy with the decision yet they wanted compensation. They stated that “compensation was more important than conviction”, something which they still had not received. “We were told we will get a compensation of Rs 10 lakh, but what will we do with that amount at this time of inflation?”, one victim said.
If Salman is punished, I will not be benefited in any way as neither my leg will heal nor my problems would go away.
–Abdullah Rauf Shaikh, victim
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