-Salman will have to go to jail
-A penalty of Rs 10,000 also levied on him.
-Salman lawyers will appeal in sessions court for bail
Jodhpur (Rajasthan: A Jodhpur court on Thursday convicted Bollywood actor Salman Khan for five years in the 1998 blackbuck poaching case. A penalty of Rs 10,000 has also been levied on him.
Earlier in the day, other accused in the case - Tabu, Saif Ali Khan, Sonali Bendre, Neelam- were acquitted, while the 'Sultan' actor was held in the court.
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Earlier UPDATES:
-Dev Kumar Khatri is already with the sentence but it is yet to be announced.
-Sentence copies sent for photocopying
-Judge Khatri still inside chamber
-Court has lunch time at 1.30pm and the
-Quantum of sentence to be pronounced after lunch
-Sister Alvira broke into tears soon after Salman was convicted in the case while the others.. Tabu, Neelam, Sonali Bendre and Saif Ali Khan were acquitted
-The public prosecutor said arguments over the quantum of sentence is over and the judge Dev Kumar Khatri would pronounce it today itself after lunch. The prosecutor said they had applied for the maximum jail term of six years under the Wildlife Protection Act. Meanwhile, the other accused in the blackbuck poaching case — Saif Ali Khan, Sonali Bendre, Tabu, Neelam — have left the Jodhpur court premises after the judge acquitted them.
-Jeev Raksha Bishnoi Sabha has protested against the decision of acquitting the other accused actors. Their acquittal will be challenged in the high court, says Shivraj Bishnoi, state president of the organisation.
Actor Salman Khan was found guilty on Thursday in the 1998 blackbuck poaching case while the other four accused stars -- Sonali Bendre, Saif Ali Khan, Tabu and Neelam -- were acquitted of all charges.
The trial of the case was in progress since the last 19 years and the judge in a court here had reserved the order after the final arguments on March 28.
Arguments were in progress in the court regarding the quantum of punishment for Salman.
Salman was accused in the case which took place while he was shooting for the film "Hum Saath-Saath Hain" in 1998.
Jeev Raksha Bishnoi Sabha has protested against the decision of acquitting the other accused stars.
Their acquittal will be challenged in the high court, said Shivraj Bishnoi, state president of the organisation.
Here is the timeline of the 20-year-old case:
In October 1998, total three cases in connection with poaching and one under the Arms Act were registered against Salman. The 52-year-old actor allegedly shot two blackbucks in Bhagoda ki Dhani in Kankani village near Jodhpur during the shooting of 'Hum Saath Saath Hain'.
Saif Ali Khan, Sonali Bendre, Tabu and Neelam were also present in the vehicle Salman allegedly used for hunting the endangered species protected under Schedule 1 of the Indian Wildlife Act.
Salman was charged under Section 51 of the Wildlife (Protection) Act and others under Section 51 read with Section 149 (unlawful assembly) of the Indian Penal Code.
The 'Dabangg' actor was in February 2006 convicted in the blackbuck hunting case, slapped a fine and sentenced to five years in jail. He spent a week in a Jodhpur jail before being granted bail.
The Rajasthan High Court on August 31, 2006, suspended the sentence and ordered the actor to not leave the country without formal permission.
The court, six years later on July 24, 2012, finalised charges against the actor and other accused in the four cases.
On July 25, 2016, the Rajasthan High Court acquitted Salman of all charges in the blackbuck poaching case and said there was no evidence to prove that the endangered animals were shot by the actor's licensed gun.
The Supreme Court on November 11, 2016, issued a notice to Salman on an appeal by the Rajasthan government challenging his acquittal in blackbuck poaching case. The apex court had agreed to fast-track the case.
In January 2017, Salman Khan was acquitted by a Jodhpur court in the Arms Act case.
The Jodhpur Chief Judicial Magistrate Court on March 25 under Jodhpur District Presiding Officer Devkumar Khatri had issued April 5 for the judgment in the 20-year-old case.
#BlackBuckPoachingCase: Police vehicle parked outside which will take Salman Khan to Jodhpur Central Jail https://t.co/ltXO0PIGSJ pic.twitter.com/oUmUgMz91F
(With inputs from ANI)