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| Bollywood star denies using unlicensed arms in poaching case | Bollywood star denies using unlicensed arms in poaching case |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| Bollywood superstar Salman Khan has pleaded not guilty to claims he used unlicensed arms to shoot antelopes in western India, saying he was framed. | Bollywood superstar Salman Khan has pleaded not guilty to claims he used unlicensed arms to shoot antelopes in western India, saying he was framed. |
| The actor, 50, is accused of using weapons with an expired licence to kill black bucks in a protected forest area, where hunting the animals is illegal, in 1998. | The actor, 50, is accused of using weapons with an expired licence to kill black bucks in a protected forest area, where hunting the animals is illegal, in 1998. |
| Khan, wearing a floral shirt and sunglasses, said in court on Thursday that forest officials had pressured him to sign a statement saying he had procured the arms from a contact in Mumbai. | Khan, wearing a floral shirt and sunglasses, said in court on Thursday that forest officials had pressured him to sign a statement saying he had procured the arms from a contact in Mumbai. |
| “I am innocent and have been framed by the forest officials,” Khan said in his plea to the judicial magistrate in a Jodhpur district court. | “I am innocent and have been framed by the forest officials,” Khan said in his plea to the judicial magistrate in a Jodhpur district court. |
| Khan was previously found guilty of poaching endangered gazelles in a separate case in 2006 and is appealing against a year-long jail sentence. | |
| Related: Why Salman Khan will never be guilty in the eyes of his biggest fans | Related: Why Salman Khan will never be guilty in the eyes of his biggest fans |
| Dinesh Tiwari, prosecuting, said the court had given Khan a chance to produce witnesses or evidence 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,” said Tiwari. | Dinesh Tiwari, prosecuting, said the court had given Khan a chance to produce witnesses or evidence 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,” said Tiwari. |
| The case was registered nearly 18 years ago when Khan was filming for the Bollywood mega-hit Hum Saath Saath Hain (We Are Together) at a village near Jodhpur. | The case was registered nearly 18 years ago when Khan was filming for the Bollywood mega-hit Hum Saath Saath Hain (We Are Together) at a village near Jodhpur. |
| Other cast members from the film, including Saif Ali Khan and Sonali Bendre, are also accused in the case. | Other cast members from the film, including Saif Ali Khan and Sonali Bendre, are also accused in the case. |
| The black buck is a species of antelope native to India and has been listed as near-threatened by the International Union for Conservation of Nature since 2003. | The black buck is a species of antelope native to India and has been listed as near-threatened by the International Union for Conservation of Nature since 2003. |
| Khan, who has starred in more than 100 films and television shows, was last year cleared of killing a homeless man in a hit-and-run crash. | Khan, who has starred in more than 100 films and television shows, was last year cleared of killing a homeless man in a hit-and-run crash. |