AR Joshi
Trilegal Mumbai-based counsel Arun Joshi has joined Morgan Stanley’s India legal team as vice president legal.
The Bombay high court today said it was difficult to believe the testimony of late Ravindra Patil, the police bodyguard assigned to Bollywood actor Salman Khan who was in the vehicle during the 28 September, 2002, hit-and-run accident case involving the Bollywood star.
Terming him as “an unreliable witness” Justice AR Joshi said it was difficult to accept Patil’s answer that the car tyre burst due to the impact” (of the crash).
The court also observed that in his police statement recorded hours after the accident that day, Patil made no mention about Salman being drunk, but said this only on 1 October (that year) after the blood sample tests reports were received.
Since Monday, the judge has been in the process of dictating in an open court his verdict on the appeal filed by the actor challenging the Sessions Court order of May 2015. Yesterday, he cast doubt on the accuracy of the blood samples provided by Khan.
By that order the Sessions Court sentenced Salman Khan to five years’ jail on, among other things, charges of “culpable homicide not amounting to murder”.
The Bombay high court on Monday directed its registry to prepare a fresh paper-book -- a compilation of documentary evidence in the 2002 accident case and conviction of Bollywood superstar Salman Khan -- by Friday as it was not made properly as per rules.
At a hearing before Justice AR Joshi, Salman’s counsel Amit Desai said certain documents, which were not required, have been included and pointed out other discrepancies in the paper-book that was submitted on Monday.
This was the second time after August 26 that the high court directed the registry to file a fresh paper-book in the case in the actor’s appeal challenging his five-year sentence by a lower court.
The high court is hearing Salman’s appeal against the sessions court verdict of May 6 which found him guilty in the accident case in Bandra on September 28, 2002 in which one person was killed and four people were injured.
At the previous hearing, Justice Joshi had ruled that the paper-book must be prepared afresh in keeping with the high court manual and, if required, assistance could be taken from the judge who had conducted the trial.
PTI reported that:
The Bombay high court on July 1 deferred till July 13 an appeal filed by Bollywood superstar Salman Khan against the five-year sentence awarded to him in the hit-and-run case, after the actor’s lawyer sought time to check documents.
Although the ‘paper book’ (compilation of evidence and documents) is ready and copies have been served to both the sides by the court), Mr Khan’s counsel Amit Desai urged for three weeks’ adjournment to check whether the documents were in order.
Desai said he needed to check if translation of documents into English was required and whether nay were missing.
Justice AR Joshi granted only two weeks of adjournment until 13 July, to which chief public prosecutor SS Shinde consented.
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