Headlines
Salman accident case: Court permits statements of dead bodyguard, medico
Mumbai, March 7
A Mumbai sessions court on
Saturday permitted the prosecution in the Salman Khan hit-and-run case
to rely on the statements of his deceased bodyguard Ravindra Patil, who
was a witness to the 2002 accident, and a medico who performed the
autopsy on the accident victim.
Patil, a police bodyguard, died
in October 2007 due to natural causes when the trial was underway before
the magistrate court, while Sanap, the doctor who performed the
autopsy, lives in the US.
The late Patil had earlier recorded his
statement before a magistrate, which the prosecution demanded should be
taken on record in the ongoing fresh trial in the sessions court after
the additional charge of culpable homicide not amounting to murder was
slapped against Salman Khan.
In his statement, Patil said he was
sitting next to Salman Khan and warned him against rash-driving but the
actor did not heed the advice.
Later, he lodged the police
complaint after the accident in which a pavement dweller was killed and
four others were injured in Bandra in the early morning of September 28,
2002.
Judge D.W. Deshpande allowed the prosecution and defence
to file their replies on Patil's statement and said Salman Khan would be
granted an opportunity to have his say in the matter and cross-examine
the investigation officer.
Salman Khan's lawyer Shrikant Shivade
had opposed prosecutor Pradeep Gharat's application, contending it would
be prejudicial to his client.
Judge Deshpande also allowed the
prosecution to rely on the statement of Sanap, who had conducted the
autopsy on the accident victim.
However, Shivade said he accepted the autopsy report and would not claim it would cause prejudice to Salman Khan.
The next hearing will be held on March 12.