Mumbai: Bollywood actor Salman Khan today (Jan 7, 2004) opposed Maharashtra Government's plea challenging the jurisdiction of Bandra magistrate to try him for alleged offences in a hit-and-run case, saying, "the State was trying to abuse the process of law and delay the trial".

Chief Metropolitan Magistrate (CMM) R D Gate deferred till January 14 the matter for arguments. He took on record an affidavit filed by Salman's lawyer Dipesh Mehta.

The actor pleaded that the State had not raised the jurisdiction issue when charges were framed against him on October 6, 2003 and also when the Supreme Court had directed Bandra magistrate to try him. It was now challenging the jurisdiction of the trial court only to delay the trial.

Bandra magistrate S Y Sishode had earlier deferred the trial to January 15 following the State Government's plea to transfer the case to other court. He asked the State to move the court of CMM to seek order on the issue.

The Supreme Court had, on December 18, asked the court in Bandra to go ahead with the case and decide during the course of trial whether the charge of culpable homicide not amounting to murder was applicable to the actor or not.

The prosecution, however, raised objection in the trial court saying the same magistrate had earlier recorded statements of three witnesses. Section 164 (6) of CrPC provides that such a magistrate should refer the statements to another magistrate who is conducting the trial.

The prosecutor argued that since Shishode had recorded the statements he could not conduct the trial and had to refer the case to some other magistrate for trial under CrPC.