The Hindu : Salman exempted from personal appearance

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Saturday, Mar 06, 2004

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Salman exempted from personal appearance

MUMBAI, MARCH 5. A local court today exempted actor Salman Khan from appearance in a hit-and-run case and deferred the matter to March 25 as the Maharashtra Government has filed an appeal against the order of the Chief Metropolitan Magistrate allowing Bandra Magistrate to conduct the trial.

Salman is facing the charge of killing one person and injuring four by ramming his vehicle into a bakery in suburban Bandra on September 28, 2002.

On a plea made by Salman's lawyer, Dipesh Mehta, the Magistrate, S. Y. Sishode, exempted the actor for the day.

Mr. Sishode deferred the trial as the State contended that it had filed an appeal against the order of the Chief Metropolitan Magistrate, R. D. Gate, who had earlier rejected its plea challenging the jurisdiction of the Bandra court to try Salman in the rash-and-negligent driving case. The appeal would be heard by Sessions court on March 10. The State had filed a petition saying the Bandra Magistrate was not competent to conduct the trial. Salman had opposed it saying the State was trying to abuse the process of law and delay the trial.

The actor pleaded that the State had not raised the jurisdiction issue when charges were framed against him on October 6 last year and also when the Supreme Court had directed the Bandra Magistrate to try him. It was now challenging the jurisdiction of the trial court only to delay the trial.

The prosecution urged that the Bandra Magistrate was not competent to conduct the trial as he had earlier recorded statements of three witnesses in this case. Under section 164 CrPC, such a Magistrate had to transfer the case to other court for trial, it argued.

The Supreme Court had, on December 18, asked the court in Bandra to go ahead with the case and decide during the course of trial whether the charge of culpable homicide not amounting to murder was applicable to the actor or not.

The prosecution, however, raised objection in the trial court saying the same Magistrate had earlier recorded statements of three witnesses. Section 164 (6) of CrPC provides that such a Magistrate should refer the statements to another Magistrate who is conducting the trial. The Supreme Court gave a major reprieve to Salman on December 18 by directing the Bandra Magistrate to try him for charges excluding ``culpable homicide not amounting to murder'' in a hit-and-run case which attracts ten years in jail.

The apex court held that the sessions court order framing this charge and the High Court order quashing it were not tenable in law as this question could be decided at the stage of the trial and not before.

On October 6, a Magistrate framed 10 charges against Salman. The actor pleaded not guilty to all the charges framed against him under provisions of IPC, Motor Vehicles Act and Bombay Prohibition Act. The maximum punishment prescribed under law for these offences is two years.

Earlier, the High Court had quashed the charge of culpable homicide framed by the sessions court and referred the case to Magistrate for trial. However, the Maharashtra Government filed an appeal in the Supreme Court against the High Court order. PTI

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Salman exempted from personal appearance