On one of the most important days in his life, actor Salman Khan appeared before the Chief Judicial Magistrate of Jodhpur wearing a white shirt embossed with two eagles flying freely on the shoulders. But when he came out of the court, after four grueling hours on a hot and dusty day, his own freedom had gone. The star, unlike the free birds, had been caged.

Reprimanding the actor in a 108-page judgment for his irresponsible and unwarranted act of poaching of a chinkara deer, CJM B K Jain sentenced him to five years of rigorous imprisonment. The much-awaited (but expected) judgment came after nearly eight years of relentless investigations, court room twists and legal battles, in which Salman’s lawyers were finally outwitted. The court examined 38 witnesses, eight of whom turned hostile, and took note of the FSL reports on 78 bloodstains of the poached chinkara, six knives and five casts of gypsy tyres picked from the shooting sight. The final script was something Salman would not like to read.

Since our society followed the stars and looked up to them, they had a greater responsibility towards the public, CJM Jain said in his stern indictment of the star. And unlike the Mumbai film industry and his fans, who were swamped by a wave of sympathy for the troubled actor, the judge said there was no scope of mercy for Salman. This was an unwarranted, needless act. He killed the animals for fun, the judge said.

Salman’s imprisonment, he said, would send two messages to the society: influential people can’t get away with such acts; and that the law does not discriminate. The message of equality would haunt Salman during his stay in the Central Jail too. “We will treat him like an ordinary prisoner. There would be no special privilege for Salman,” Jail Superintendent M L Chauhan said. “He would be offered the daal, chawal and roti cooked for other prisoners. Food from outside will not be allowed,” he said. Salman’s friend Katrina Kaif and family members are expected to land in Jodhpur late in the night. But the family reunion will have to wait as Salman would be allowed to meet visitors only between 3 and 5 pm tomorrow, like all other prisoners.

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