File photo: Actor Salman Khan outside a court.
In an appeal against a five-year sentencing for Salman Khan in the 2002 hit-and-run case, his lawyer today alleged in Bombay High Court that there were several discrepancies in the collection of the actor's blood samples and its examination.
The lawyer said the quantity of blood taken at the hospital did not match with the one received by a forensic lab for examination.
"Blood extracted by PW-20 (Dr Shashikant Pawar, Medical Officer at JJ Hospital in Mumbai) was 6 ml, which was stored in two vials of 3 ml each. However, PW-18 (Dattatray Bhalshankar, chemical analyser at Forensic Lab in Kalina) found 4 ml of blood only in one vial," Salman's lawyer Amit Desai told Justice A R Joshi of the Bombay High Court.
The high court is hearing an appeal filed by the actor against his conviction in which he has been found guilty of ramming his car into a shop in suburban Bandra on September 28, 2002, killing one person and injuring four who were sleeping on a pavement.
"It appears that what PW-18 (chemical analyser) has received is a completely different sample," the lawyer said. The appellant (Salman) has been convicted with this kind of evidence, Desai argued and alleged that this is an addition to the chain of discrepancies.
Besides, the chemical analyser's report does not speak about the percentage of alcohol but talks only about the content of alcohol.
Referring to portions of the paper book (evidence), Mr Desai said that evidence in one place says "one sealed vial intact, as per copy sent", while in another place it says "no copy sent".
"This is confusing.... so whether it is 'vial intact as per copy sent' or 'no copy sent'... an ambiguity has been created," Mr Desai pointed out to the court.
The lawyer further said the "blood story" is curious -- it starts from Bhabha Hospital, which does not have the facility to draw blood and goes to the JJ Hospital, where oxalate, which is an anti-coagulant, has been shown as a preservative.