Jodhpur, July 20: A local court today rejected the prosecution's plea that the arms recovered from bollywood actor Salman Khan in a poaching case should be treated as exhibits. Chief Judicial Magistrate S K Mathur rejected the application moved by the assistant director (prosecution) after the defence counsel opposed it on the ground that since the arms--a pistol and a gun--were seized from Khan in another case, they could not be sought as exhibit in this case. The court held that since the arms were lying in its store in another case against the actor, they cannot be summoned in the current trial related to killing of protected wild animals near Mathania four years ago. Khan is facing trial in three different cases of poaching wild animals.
Meanwhile, police inspector Satya Mani Tiwari, who was posted with the unit during the shooting of the film 'Hum Saath Saath Hain' in and around Jodhpur in 1998, told the court in his deposition that Khan informed him that his pistol had been missing from his hotel room.
Tiwari said that the actor had not informed him about the missing of the pistol in the morning of September 29, 1998 when he reported for duty in the hotel. But Khan told him about it at Luni Fort where the shooting was in progress.

On being informed about Khan's complaint on telephone, the Superintendent of Police asked him to register a case. However, the pistol was later found in a shelf above the bed in the actor's room in his hotel, the inspector said, adding that since the missing pistol was found, he did not register any case.

Bureau Report