Salman Khan asked to appear before Jodhpur Court

A court in Jodhpur, Rajasthan, on Tuesday, directed actor Salman Khan to appear before it on September 20th till the verdict of the court is decided regarding his appeal against his conviction in Chinkara (Black Buck) poaching case. The actor family is shocked with this sudden development as he is under tight schedule presently and has at least 150 crores riding on him in next two months.

On February 17, 2006, Salman was sentenced to one year imprisonment for hunting and killing two Chinkaras in Bhawad village near Jodhpur on September 26, 1998 during the shooting of Hum Saath Saath Hain. The other actors accused in the case included actors like Saif Ali Khan, Sonali Bendre, Neelam Kothari, Tabu and Satish Shah were acquitted.

On April 10, 2006, Salman was sentenced to five year of jail for hunting the endangered Chinkara. He was remanded to Jodhpur jail, and remained there until April 13 when he was granted bail. On August 24, 2007, the Jodhpur sessions court upheld the 5 year jail term for Khan by turning down his appeal against the 2006 judgment.

At the time of hearing Salman was busy shooting elsewhere, while his sister attended the proceedings. The court had found Salman guilty under Section 51 of the Wildlife Protection Act, 1972. After his conviction, the actor spent three nights in Jodhpur Central Jail before the District and Sessions court gave him bail. Salman then filed an appeal against the conviction on March 9, 2006 challenging his conviction under the Wild Life Protection Act by the chief judicial magistrate on February 17, 2006. The court will now regularly hear the case from September 20.

Bollywood Hungama sources report that Salman's lawyer is filing an appeal for exemption and might even go to a higher court with the plea.