Supreme Court still to decide whether to reopen Salman Khan case

Despite the fact that the Maharashtra government called actor Salman Khan's acquittal in the 2002 hit-and-run case "a travesty of justice", a Supreme Court bench said it is still deliberating over whether to reopen the case at all, reports The Indian Express.

"We are still making up our minds. We must remember it is an appeal against an acquittal," said Justices J S Khehar and C Nagappan, after hearing Attorney General Mukul Rohatgi arguing on behalf of the Maharashtra government which believes that the Bombay High Court's decision to acquit the actor in the hit-and-run case was erroneous.

Rohatgi said in response: ".This is not just a case of acquittal but a case of reversal of conviction. He was first convicted and then the order was set aside by the High Court. This court has said in many judgments that a special leave to appeal has to be admitted when the high court order is perverse or wrong."

The arguments on Friday were centred on evidence relating to who was driving the car that ran over a man sleeping on a pavement on the night of 28 September, 2002.

"We want to see the purport of questions put to the prosecution witnesses regarding the driver of the vehicle," the bench said.

Rohatgi then read the statements of two witnesses who said there were three persons in the car - Salman, his friend Kamal Khan, and his bodyguard Ravindra Patil. "The theory of a fourth person is an afterthought. The accused or his father (Salim Khan) never said anything about this driver for 13 years whereas it had to be the first natural defence," Rohatgi said.

He added that the testimony of Patil, which was held inadmissible by the Bombay High Court, was legally tenable. Patil died of tuberculosis in 2007.

"This bodyguard said that the accused was driving the vehicle. What motive can he be said to have for framing the actor? Also, see the conduct of the accused. He did not help anybody injured on the spot and fled. When his blood test was done, the alcohol limit was found to be excessive even after 12 hours of the incident. All this evidence has been wrongly discounted by the High Court," said Rohatgi.

The next hearing will be on 12 February.