Black buck poaching case: Jodhpur HC issues fresh notices to actors Saif Ali Khan, Sonali Bendre, Tabu

Bollywood actor Salman Khan is the sole accused who was convicted in the case. The trial court had sentenced him to five years in jail on April 5 last year, while acquitting the five other co-accused. Khan is presently out on bail.

A single judge bench of justice Manoj Kumar Garg issued notices to the respondents seeking their reply within eight weeks.

Earlier, the high court had on March 11 issued notices to the five respondents on the state government’s appeal challenging their acquittal in the case.

“Of these, notices to Saif and Sonali could not be served. Considering this, the court issued fresh notices to them seeking reply in 8 weeks,” said government counsel Mahipal Bishnoi.

After the five files their replies, the state’s appeal would be sent back to the session court for further hearing as the first appeal to a magisterial court judgement lies in the sessions court, explained Bishnoi.

The state had come to the high court after the sessions court had taken objections to the late filing of the appeal by the state government, he said.

Salman Khan has already challenged his conviction before the sessions court, which is presently hearing the defence arguments in his appeal.