A Jodhpur court today announced the verdict in the 19-year-old black buck poaching case and convicted Salman Khan while the other co-stars such as Saif Ali Khan, Sonali Bendre, Neelam and Tabu were acquitted. According to the reports Salman Khan was charged under Section 51 of the Wildlife (Protection) Act. The maximum punishment under Section 51 is six years.
While the court decided Salman’s fate, his fans took to social media to express their dejection and disbelief. According to the reports, there were 28 witnesses in the case. On 2 October 1998, Khan allegedly hunted two black bucks. His co-stars Tabu, Sonali Bendre, Neelam and Saif Ali Khan are co-accused in the case and the court has set them free.
In an interview in 2009, actor Salman Khan had claimed that the group had come across the herd of deer when they were returning after pack-up while shooting Hum Saath Saath Hain. He said, "We saw deer fawn, stuck in a bush. The whole herd was there. He (fawn) was petrified. I took him out of there, gave him some water. The whole pack was there. He ate a few biscuits and then went away".