Bollywood actor Salman Khan appeared before the Jodhpur court Thursday, and pleaded "not guilty" in the Arms Act case. Last week, Chief Judicial Magistrate Dalpat Singh Rajpurohit ordered Salman to appear before the court to record his statement in the Arms Act case.
During the hearing, Salman answered to the general questions regarding his name, father's name, age, residential address and others. He was also asked about the allegations levelled against him by the prosecution, to which Salman replied that he is not guilty.
"I am innocent and have been framed by the forest officials," Salman said before the chief judicial magistrate, according to the Press Trust of India.
Salman, referring to a statement signed by him, alleged that he signed the statement under pressure from forest officials. The statement states that witness Uday Raghvan had brought the arms from Mumbai after Salman ordered him to do so.
The court has set April 4 as the next hearing date in the Arms Act case. Additional Public Prosecutor Dinesh Tiwari told PTI that the court has given Salman a chance to prove that he is not guilty in the case and asked him to produce witnesses in support of his defence.
"If he does so, they will be examined in the court otherwise, the case will be listed for final arguments," Tiwari said.
Salman arrived in Jodhpur with his sister Alvira Khan Agnihotri and bodyguard Shera to record his statement. This is the third time Salman appeared before the court in Jodhpur to record his statement in connection with the Arms Act case.
The case was registered against Salman after the weapons, he allegedly used to kill two blackbucks, had their licenses expired. The blackbucks, a protected animal under the Wildlife Protection Act, were killed at Kankani village near Jodhpur, Oct. 1, 1998, when Salman was shooting for his film "Hum Saath Saath Hain."
Apart from Salman, his "Hum Saath Saath Hai" co-stars, Saif Ali Khan, Sonali Bendre, Tabu and Neelam are also accused of killing blackbucks during the shooting of the film.
