Salman Khan Charged With Killing Homeless
The Bollywood movie legend is accused of drunkenly driving his car over five homeless people in Mumbai, killing one of them.
2:49pm, Wednesday 24 July 2013
Indian film actor Salman Khan walks the ramp at the music launch of the film 'Babul' in Mumbai, late 26 October 2006. Film production house B.R.Films celebrated its 50th year in the film industry and released its latest film's 'Babul' music CD with a fashion show in which the lead star cast took part. AFP PHOTO/Sebastian D'SOUZA (Photo credit should read SEBASTIAN D'SOUZA/AFP/Getty Images)
An Indian court has charged Bollywood star Salman Khan with culpable homicide over a 2002 hit-and-run case that could send him to prison for 10 years.
Khan, 47, is alleged to have rammed his Toyota Land Cruiser vehicle on to a pavement and over five sleeping homeless people in suburban Mumbai, killing one and injuring four others.
Appearing in court wearing a grey shirt and black trousers he pleaded not guilty to a charge of culpable homicide not amounting to murder, an offence carrying 10 years in prison.
Khan is accused of drink-driving and culpable homicide
After charging the actor, the judge added: "Salman Khan's blood contained 30 mg of alcohol, according to that he was drunk."
Mumbai's laws prohibit anyone from driving or attempting to drive a vehicle if their blood alcohol levels exceed 30 milligrams per 100 millilitres of blood.
Prosecutor Shankar Erande asked the judge to proceed with the charges sooner rather than later as Mr Khan was going abroad for two months, which could delay the trial even further.
A petition has been filed questioning the decade-long delay in trying Khan.
He was due to be tried under lesser charges of "rash and negligent driving" but prosecutors filed an application for the charges to be upgraded, which the court upheld in February.
Khan, known for his muscular physique and off-camera fits of temper, has been a controversial figure since he broke into Bollywood in the late 1980s in the romance film Maine Pyar Kiya (I Fell in Love).
In 1998, he spent more than a week in prison for killing endangered Indian gazelles in the northern state of Rajasthan.
