Salman Khan is exonerated in the 2019 assault case, but the Bombay High Court issues a warning against using the legal system to harass public figures.
Along with popularity, fame comes with a lot of other things, including in Salman Khan’s case, a lot of controversies. The actor is presently facing death threats, but the Bombay High Court last month threw out criminal charges against him in a 2019 assault case. The Bombay High Court further stated that a celebrity should not be harassed as a result of court proceedings.
In 2019, a journalist filed a complaint alleging criminal intimidation against the actor and his bodyguard Mohd Nawaz Iqbal Shaikh. According to the journalist, he and his cameraman attempted to capture Khan while he was cycling after getting an OK from his bodyguards. However, as the actor refused to be filmed, they violently treated him.
The Bombay High Court recently stated that a celebrity should not be the target of unwarranted harassment through the legal system while dismissing criminal charges against actor Salman Khan and his bodyguard.
After hearing the actor from Tiger and his bodyguard’s complaint against the magistrate court that had started the legal process against them, Justice Bharti H Dangre issued the decision on March 30. However, the detailed ruling, which was released on Tuesday, April 11, stated that the judiciary should not be utilized to harass a performer. Justice Bharti H. Dangre.
According to Bar and Bench, the order stated, “The judicial process need not be a means for needless harassment merely because the Accused is a well-known celebrity and without adhering to the procedure of law, he shall not be subjected to unnecessary oppression at the hands of a complainant, who set in the machinery into motion to satisfy his vendetta and assumed that he was insulted by the cine star.”
Salman Khan had previously been charged with charges under Sections 504 and 506 of the Indian Penal Code, including deliberate assault and criminal intimidation. However, Justice Dangre noted that the Magistrate dismissed Sections 504 and 506 in the case without according to the procedural obligation.
The order by the Justice further stated, “The words uttered in despair or a gesture, however frightful, by itself would not attract Section 504. The allegations against Khan in the complaint, apart from being an afterthought, in no case met the necessary ingredients of Sections 504 and 506, which would have warranted the Magistrate to take cognizance upon a complaint.” The Justice further quashed the order and mentioned that proceeding against Salman Khan would be “nothing short of an abuse of the process.”
In terms of his career, Salman Khan is presently preparing for the release of Kisi Ka Bhai Kisi Ki Jaan, in which he also co-stars with Daggubati Venkatesh, Pooja Hegde, Shehnaaz Gill, and others. On April 21, 2022, the film is scheduled to be released in theatres. He also has Tiger 3 with Katrina Kaif, on the other hand.