Maharashtra government to move Supreme Court on acquittal of Salman Khan

In fresh trouble for Bollywood superstar Salman Khan, the Maharashtra government has decided to move the Supreme Court to challenge his acquittal in the 2002 hit-and-run case. This was conveyed to the Bombay high court on Wednesday as it was hearing a PIL on the drink-driving issue.

Government pleader Abhinandan Vagyani told a division bench of Justices Abhay S. Oka and Gautam S. Patel the government had on Tuesday decided to file a special leave petition in the Supreme Court on Salman Khan’s acquittal. A day earlier, the high court asked the government what action it would take against the investigating officer in the case as high court judge A.R. Joshi had pointed out many loopholes in the investigation and negligence on his part. As the government decided to file an appeal against the conviction, a decision on action against the investigating officer will have to be taken after the Su-preme Court’s decision as there is a possibility that it may reverse the high court order.

The SLP will be filed in due course, the pleader told the court as it was hearing a PIL filed by journalist Nikhil Wagle seeking compensation from Salman Khan for the victims of the 2002 hit-and-run case. Though the actor had deposited the compensation almost a decade ago for the families of the victims as directed by the high court, Mr Wagle’s petition is still being heard as the court expanded its scope to include the issues of enhancement of punishment in drink-driving cases and forensic procedures adopted by the authorities to determine the consumption of alcohol by accused.

On May 6, a sessions court had sentenced the actor to five years in jail after it held him guilty of offences including culpable homicide not amounting to murder. Aggrieved, Salman Khan had filed an appeal in the high court, which had acquitted him.

The judges, in the course of Wednesday’s hearing, also sought to know if the licences of persons caught driving drunk are suspended or not because if the provisions of the Motor Vehicle Act are read with the Central rules, there is power available to the government to suspend the licences. The court was informed that licences are only suspended in serious mishaps such as fatal accidents. Mr Vagyani told the court a suggestion would be made to the government to amend the law so that driving licences can be suspended while a case was pending, and if an accused was convicted, it could then be permanently cancelled.

Meanwhile, some social activists and legal experts have welcomed the state government’s plan to move the Supreme Court to challenge Salman Khan’s acquittal. Former DGP D. Sivanandan said the decision was “one in tandem with the public perception”. Human rights activist Abha Singh, who had raised several questions during the trial, said “this decision to appeal in the Supreme Court will certainly clear the conflicting issues and ensure that justice is done in this case”.