Court exempts Salman Khan from appearance in hit-and-run case

The Bollywood actor, who turned 47 today, pleaded he was not responsible for delaying the trial in the case in which he was alleged to have crushed five people sleeping on a pavement under his Toyota Land Cruiser, killing one of them, and sought dismissal of the complaint.

His lawyer Dipesh Mehta produced a Bombay High Court order of June 10, 2005, which had granted permanent exemption to the actor from appearance in the case unless the trial court specifically wanted him to attend.

Mehta said the actor would appear as and when directed by the court. "Even now he will come if the court so directs," he said, arguing the complaint was not maintainable under Cr.Pc as complainant Santosh Daundkar had no locus standi in the case.

The complainant's lawyer Abha Singh alleged that the police had favoured the actor by not examining witnesses and producing wrong set of witnesses with a view to delaying the trial for five years. Singh, a bureaucrat-turned-lawyer, sought regular attendance by the actor before the court.

Khan's counsel, however, denied that between 2008 and 2010 no witnesses were examined, saying the prosecution had already examined more than 15 witnesses so far. He maintained if at all there was a delay in the trial, it was not because of him.

Deferring the matter to January 30, the court has asked the police to file its reply to the complaint which has alleged they had colluded with Khan to delay the trial.

Hearing Danudkar's complaint on December 3, Bandra Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Vasant Patil had issued summons to Khan and Mumbai police to answer charges of giving false information and producing wrong witnesses to delay the trial.

The complaint alleged that the trial was deliberately delayed so that the actor could devote time to films and earn money. Other high-profile cases involving businessman Alistair Pereira and NRI Nooria Havelivala were decided but the one related to Khan was still pending despite it predating those two cases.

Hundreds of Khan's fans waited in the court compound and outside in anticipation of his arrival but the actor did not attend the proceedings.