Monday, June 19 2006 14:13 Hrs (IST) - World Time -

Jodhpur: The poaching of endangered blackbucks came back to haunt the mightiest in Bollywood Monday with a court in this Rajasthan town reframing charges against Salman Khan, Saif Ali Khan, Tabu, Neelam and Sonali Bendre in the case.

All the five stars were present when the Jodhpur court read out the formal charges against them for killing two blackbucks in nearby Kankani village on the intervening night of Oct 1-2, 1998, during the shooting of Sooraj Barjatya's blockbuster 'Hum Saath Saath Hain'.

The next hearing for the case has been fixed for July 3, Salman's counsel Hastimal Saraswat told sources.

While Salman has been charged under Section 51 of the Wildlife Protection Act for hunting a protected species, the other stars have been charged for abetment under Section 52 of the act.

If found guilty, the stars could face a penalty of one-six years in prison and a fine of up to Rs.25,000.



The court reframed the charges against the stars as per the order of the additional district sessions court, which while allowing the revision petition had ordered dropping of the sections relating to the Indian Penal Code on May 4.

Salman has earlier been convicted in two cases relating to poaching of chinkaras (Indian gazelles).

On Feb 17, a judge of a lower court in Jodhpur had sentenced the actor to a year in jail for killing a chinkara in Bhavad village of the district in September 1998.



Again on April 10 he was sentenced to five years in jail for killing a chinkara in Ghoda farms near Jodhpur on Sep 28, 1998.

In this case the Bollywood actor had to spent three nights in a Jodhpur jail before being released on bail.