Rape remark: Salman Khan fails to turn up before Maharashtra women's panel, faces fresh summons

Mumbai/New Delhi, Jun 29: Bollywood actor Salman Khan today did not appear before Maharashtra State Commission for Women to explain his "rape" remark, inviting dispeasure of the panel which issued fresh summons to him for his appearance on July 7.

The superstar's reply to the National Commission for Women's notice to him over the same remark, failed to satisfy the panel, which said it found Salman "not apologetic".

Citing double jeopardy, a procedural defence that forbids a defendant from being tried again on the same (or similar) charges in the same case, the actor had sent a letter to the MSCW through his lawyer that since the matter was being heard by the NCW, it cannot be taken up by the state Commission.

"The Commission and its members today went through the letter given by the actor and we found it unsatisfactory. The letter says that case is already being heard by NCW and hence it would amount to a case of double jeopardy.

"But we are of the view that our state commission has been conferred with concurrent powers and the case can be heard at both the places simultaneously," MSCW Chairperson Vijaya Rahatkar told reporters in Mumbai. The Commission has now summoned the actor to appear before it on July 7, she said.

The state panel had sent him a notice asking him to appear before it today and explain his position on the matter. When asked what steps the Commission would take if Khan failed to turn up again on July 7, Rahatkar said, "That would be decided that day."

In Delhi, NCW chairperson Lalitha Kumaramangalam said in his reply Salman was "not apologetic" and that the panel was examining its mandate to deal with such instances and the legalities involved.

"Salman Khan has sent a reply and it is not apologetic in tenor. We now need to decide what we are going to do next. We have to look at both what comes under our mandate and what are the legalities involved...

"We are not going to give out the details of Salman Khan's reply now. We need to first go through it in detail, along with our lawyers. Only then will both his reply and what we are going to do next will be made public," she said.

The reply was e-mailed to NCW through Salman's lawyer last evening, while the NCW notice was sent directly to the actor's residence.

"The reply has come from his lawyer, which means it is a legal reply. So we can't just reply off the cuff," Kumaramangalam said.

The NCW chief had earlier said that if the actor did not give a satisfactory reply he could be asked to appear before the Commission.

The actor's remark in a recent interview comparing himself with a raped woman has triggered an outrage.

"When I used to walk out of the ring, after the shoot (of Sultan), I used to feel like a raped woman. I couldn't walk straight," Salman had said, inviting wrath of several women's groups.

Calling the comment "callous and condemnable", NCW had issued Salman a notice last week, giving him five days to reply.

"We have sent him a letter asking for explanation in seven days. We have said that he should give a public apology," the NCW chief had then said.

PTI