Bigg Boss host Salman Khan cornered in Bombay High Court

Mumbai, Nov 18: Salman Khan, who currently is making headlines over his TV reality show Bigg Boss and recently released movie Prem Ratan Dhan Payo, has been cornered in court.

The Bollywood actor, whose infamous hit-and-run case is up for hearing in Bombay High Court, has been questioned about his driver Ashok Singh.

Prosecution questioned why Salman Khan's driver came to his rescue after 13 years if he really was driving the car at the time of the accident in which one was killed and many were injured.

During the hearing in Bombay High Court on Tuesday, Nov 17, prosecution refuted Salman Khan's defence that his driver Ashok Singh was driving the car and pointed out that this claim was made only towards the end of the trial.

The prosecution cornered the actor stating, "Ashok Singh (the actor's family driver) appeared before the sessions court for the first time at the fag end of trial, 13 years after the mishap, with a view to saving his master Salman."

Sandeep Shinde, the prosecutor, also raised questions about actor-singer Kamaal Khan who reportedly had accompanied Salman Khan on the ill-fated night in 2002.

Mr Shinde claimed that Kamaal Khan was not examined by the prosecution during the previous trial because he had become untraceable.

Defence recently urged the court to tell prosecution to examine Kamaal Khan as he was one of prime eyewitnesses in the case.

Confirming their decision of filing a reply to the actor's application regarding Kamaal Khan, Shinde was quoted as saying, "Kamaal is a British national."

"He has appeared before a magistrate who conducted the trial earlier and sought permission to go abroad, which was granted....And he vanished. When the trial was transferred to the sessions court, we could not locate his whereabouts," Shinde told Justice A R Joshi who is hearing Salman's appeal against his conviction and five-year sentence.

The sessions court earlier in May 2015 convicted Salman for ramming his car into a Bandra shop, killing one person and injuring four others, on Sept 28, 2002.

Continuing his argument against Salman and his driver, Shinde also asserted, "No person can keep a driver in employment for such a long time, for 13 years, who has brought a bad name to him."

The defence should have made the claim that there were in fact four people in the car (including Ashok Singh) at the start of the trial and not at the fag end, he added.

According to the police, the car had three occupants -- Salman in driver's seat, his police bodyguard Ravindra Patil who passed away during the trial in 2007, and Kamaal Khan.

OneIndia News
(With agency inputs)