2002 hit-and-run case: Salman Khan was drunk when he was driving, prosecution tells court

Mumbai: The prosecution in the hit-and-run case involving Bollywood superstar Salman Khan on Wednesday told the trial court that the actor was drunk when he was driving his Land Cruiser SUV at the time of the mishap in 2002. It also dismissed the defence contention that the vehicle had developed a mechanical snag and its front tyre burst, leading to the accident. [caption id=“attachment_2189729” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  Salman Khan. AFP[/caption] Special Public Prosecutor Pradeep Gharat said that blood test showed that the actor was under the influence of liquor that night. “Khan had tested positive for alcohol consumption… his test revealed presence of 62 mg of ethyl alcohol in 100 ml blood sample,” he said. All the procedures were followed properly in extracting the blood and its transportation to the police station and then to the laboratory, Gharat said. Quoting the deposition of the chemical analyst, he said normally a person who consumes alcohol would have about 30 mg of alcohol per 100 ml and if he or she is on medication then it may increase by upto 40 per cent. Ruling out the mechanical snag theory, the prosecutor said a punctured tyre does not hamper the driving of such SUVs immediately because radial tyres are used. Sometimes even the driver does not notice a punctured tyre, he said. Khan, 49, is facing a trial for ramming his SUV into a bakery in suburban Bandra on September 28, 2002, killing one person and injuring four who were sleeping outside. The sessions judge DW Deshpande is now hearing the final arguments. The SUV had hit the shutter of the bakery and climbed the steps after running over people sleeping on the pavement. The force of impact was such that a front tyre was damaged (and it had not burst prior to the impact), he said. The vehicle was pulled out with the help of a crane by police and there was tampering with the engine, Gharat said. The police, he said, had not turned on the ignition key to start the engine either at the spot or at the police station but kept the vehicle in the same condition for RTO officer’s inspection, he said. PTI