The Maharashtra Government’s appeal challenging a Bombay High Court order acquitting actor Salman Khan in the 2002 hit-and run case is unlikely to get an early hearing with the Supreme Court expected to take up the appeal on its usual turn expected to arrive after several years or even a decade.
Before admitting the appeal, senior advocate Kapil Sibal appearing for Khan told the Bench of Justices JS Khehar and Arun Mishra that his client was agreeable to the petition being heard after several years as he wants the Supreme Court to finally decide the case on merits. The state represented by Attorney General Mukul Rohatgi , however, pointed out that the case has been hanging fire for almost 15 years. He requested for the case to be listed after
six weeks.
The Bench said, “There are other serious matters pending before us. We cannot fast-track a case just because X, Y or Z is there.” An option was left open to the State Government to request the Chief Justice of India for expediting the hearing of the appeal.
The Bollywood superstar was accused of mowing down one person and injuring four others under the wheels of his SUV driven in high speed allegedly by the actor at Bandra, Mumbai on the intervening night of September 27-28, 2002. The trial court had sentenced Khan to five years in prison but the Bombay HC on December 10, 2015 reversed the verdict and absolved Khan of all charges.