Hit-and-run case: Injured moves SC against Salman's acquittal

A victim in the 2002 Salman Khan hit-and-run case moved the Supreme Court on Thursday challenging the acquittal of the Bollywood star by the Bombay high court.

The special leave petition filed by Muslim Niyamat Shaikh, who was injured in the accident, prayed for quashing the high court verdict and a direction to the Maharashtra government and Mr Khan to pay compensation to him and to his family. The petition is to be heard on Friday alongwith an SLP already pending before a bench headed by Justice J.S. Khehar.

In his petition, Mr Shaikh contended that the high court has wrongly acquitted Mr Khan by ignoring the material points with regard to the statement of the petitioner before the police and the trial court which had sentenced him to five years rigorous imprisonment.

Maintaining that Mr Khan was driving the vehicle at the time of accident, he said that the high court was not justified in not attributing knowledge on the part of Mr Khan in driving the vehicle under the influence of liquor and treating it as a pure and simple accident case. He said that Mr Khan should be punished for culpable homicide under Section 304 Part-II of the IPC.

Mr Shaikh said that since the accident he has not able to walk due to the damage to his left leg which had been fractured and had to be fitted with a rod and has had to resort to begging to sustain himself and his family and prayed for a direction to the state and to the actor to award him adequate compensation and a direction to pay interim relief till the disposal of the main petition.

He said neither the Maharashtra government nor Mr Khan had so far paid any compensation to him. He pointed out that as per an apex court judgment, the trial court or the high court ought to have awarded him compensation under Section 357 of CrPC.