Jail for Salman, Aditya Pancholi says he's in Mumbai

Jaipur: Salman Khan may soon land behind bars. A Jodhpur court has rejected his appeal against the five-year sentence in the Chinkara poaching case.

The court has also rejected Salman Khan's appeal asking for 10 days time to surrender. An arrest warrant has been issued against the actor and a team from Rajasthan Police will be sent Saturday to arrest him.

Salman's case is like a Bollywood story, full of twists and turns. The big question remains whether his absence in the court was a strategy to make him spend as less time in the jail as possible.

Salman's lawyer's had a variety of excuses for his no-show at the court. First, his lawyer in Jodhpur said he was ill, later local lawyers said he had missed his flight, and finally his Mumbai lawyer said he hadn't turned up because the judge hadn't asked him to.

But Salman's friend and actor Aditya Pancholi told CNN-IBN that he is in his Mumbai home. “He is not depressed at all. He is perfectly okay and very much at his Bandra house,” said Pancholi.

Salman Khan tried to put up a brave front by posing for cameras at his home in Mumbai on Friday evening, but the anxiety was evident.

The court has upheld the 5-year sentence given to him last year, turning down the actor's appeal.

“The judgement has been upheld right in his opinion. The 126-page judgement is a well-reasoned one,” said Ashok Kumar Widlife Conservationist.

For the Bishnois campaigning against the actor, the verdict was only too welcome.

“The court has given the right verdict. We thank the witnesses and the legal lobby which has given this judgement,” said Mahipal Bishnoi, Lawyer of the Bishnoi Community.

An arrest warrant has been issued against Salman and a Rajasthan Police team will be sent to Mumbai on Saturday to arrest him. But by the time they get there, the actor's lawyers are likely to have applied for bail.

Salman’s hopes for acquittal have fallen flat with this verdict. While he's running out of options, legal trouble for him are really increasing.

<table width="250" border="0" cellpadding="2" cellspacing="1"> <tr> <td colspan="7" valign="top" bgcolor="#EDAFEA"><div align="center"><strong>WHAT LIES AHEAD FOR SALMAN</strong></div></td> </tr> <tr> <td colspan="7" valign="top" bgcolor="#F8E0F7">Between Rs 75 to 80 crore riding on Salman right now. Two major projects are under production.</td> </tr> <tr> <td colspan="7" valign="top" bgcolor="#F8E0F7">Salman working on Rumi Jaffery's <i>God Tussi Great Ho</i></td> </tr> <tr> <td colspan="7" valign="top" bgcolor="#F8E0F7">Salman's other projects include Sanjay Bhansali's <i>Saawariya</i></td> </tr> <tr> <td colspan="7" valign="top" bgcolor="#F8E0F7">Salman also working on remake of Telugu hit <i>Pokiri</i></td> </tr> </table>

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#Salman Khan #chinkara poaching case #Aditya Pancholi