Breather to Salman: Now Raj HC to hear all blackbuck hunting cases

Jaipur, March 21:  Bollywood star Salman Khan, accused in the blackbuck hunting case, got a breather from the Rajasthan High Court on Monday as it accepted his plea urging that it hear the three petitions related to the case, instead of the Sessions Court.

Salman had filed a petition in the Sessions Court to transfer the pending appeal to the High Court, and this was accepted on Monday.

A petition was also presented in the High Court on behalf of Salman in which it was pleaded that all matters are related to each other in this case and in such a situation, they should be heard together in the High Court.

Public prosecutor Gaurav Singh had no objection to these cases being heard in the High Court.

Soon after, Justice Pushpendra Singh Bhati issued an order to hear all the cases in the High Court itself. Salman's sister Alvira was also present in the court during the hearing on Monday. Salman's lawyer Hastimal Saraswat said that this comes as a big relief for him.

The trial court convicted Salman Khan and sentenced him to 5 years imprisonment in a blackbuck hunting case reported in the outskirts of Kankani village.

However, he was acquitted in the Arms Act case, but the state government appealed against this in the Sessions Court.

The state government, in fact, has also filed a petition in the High Court against the acquittal of Saif Ali Khan, Neelam, Tabu, and Sonali Bendre in the blackbuck poaching case.

In 1998, during the shooting of his film "Hum Saath Saath Hain" in Jodhpur, Salman was accused of hunting at three different places near Jodhpur city. Under this, separate cases were registered against him for hunting chinkara in the outskirts of Ghora Farm House and Bhavad village. The third case was registered for hunting two blackbucks in Kankani village. The fourth case was registered against Salman under the Arms Act.