The Bombay High Court today acquitted Salman Khan saying that he cannot be convicted on the basis of the evidence produced in the 2002 hit-and-run case. Salman was convicted and sentenced to five years imprisonment by a sessions court. Giving this verdict, Justice A R Joshi said the prosecution failed to establish its case against the appellant accused on all charges. <br/><br/>The court made ten major observations while delivering the verdict, first one was, the burden is on the prosecution to establish the guilt of the accused and this needs to be done beyond reasonable doubt. The court further observed that the investigation was conducted in a faulty manner with many loose ends and as such benefit of this had to be given in favour of the accused. <br/><br/>On the main aspects as to driving and drunkenness, the prosecution has not brought any material evidence which spells out the offence of the accused. Singer Kamal Khan, who was present in car with Salman Khan, should have been questioned.<br/><br/>While reacting on the verdict, Salman Khan said he accepts the decision of the judiciary with humility. Chief minister Devendra Fadnavis said that government will decide to challenge the verdict only after examining the details. On September 28, 2002, Salman's car had rammed into a bakery shop in suburban Bandra. One person was killed and four others were injured in the mishap.

Salman Khan has been acquitted by the Bombay High Court in the 2002 hit-and-run case, in which he had earlier been sentenced by Sessions court to five years in jail. The Bombay high court today said Bollywood star Salman Khan cannot be convicted in the 2002 hit-and-run case, saying the prosecution has not proven the charges against the actor. Justice AR Joshi pointed out that Salman can't be convicted because of "various shortcomings in investigations and prosecution's evidence. Salman had appealed to the high court to overturn a sessions court judgment in May that held him guilty and handed out a five-year jail term in the 2002 hit-and-run case.<br/><br/>Justice Joshi said after seeking Salman's presence in court at the time of pronouncing the verdict that doubt arises over involvement of appellant on charges. Investigation was conducted in faulty manner with scant regard to procedure.<br/><br/>Yesterday, the high court opened a window of hope for the popular actor when it had observed that the prosecution had not convincingly proved the 49-year-old actor was drunk or driving his Toyota Land Cruiser when the vehicle ran over five sleeping people on a pavement, one of whom died later, in Bandra West on September 28, 2002.<br/><br/>Justice Joshi said it was difficult to rely on the testimony of Late Ravindra Patil, the police guard who was in the vehicle at the time of the accident.<br/><br/>He observed that Patil, who died of tuberculosis in 2007, was not a "wholly reliable witness" because of the numerous changes in his statements during the course of the trial, although he was the lone witness to testify that Salman was drunk at the wheel.

Bombay High Court today acquitted Salman Khan in the 2002 hit-and-run case, and quashed his conviction and 5-year sentence. The court said that on basis of evidences produced by the prosecution, the appellant cannot be convicted, no matter how differently the common man thinks. The Court observed that the prosecution has failed to establish the case against actor Salman Khan in connection with the 2002 hit-and-run case. The actor has been ordered to appear before it as it pronounced the final order.<br/><br/>The court also observed that appreciation of evidence by trial court is not proper according to principles of jurisprudence. There has been a faulty manner to establish procedure for connecting chain of evidence with regard to biological evidence, the court added.<br/><br/>The actor was convicted of all charges by a sessions court earlier this year in the case relating to 2002 when Salman's Toyota Land Cruiser had crashed into five men sleeping outside a bakery on Hill Road in Bandra in the early hours of September 28. One person was killed and four others were injured. But later, the Bombay HC suspended the sentence after the actor appealed against his conviction.<br/><br/>