Salman Khan has come out of jail, on bail, spending almost a week behind the bars after he was sentenced for five years in a nine-year-old Chinkara poaching case. While his diehard fans gave an emotional welcome to the released star animal rights activists are not quite happy about the verdict. Prominent environmentalist and former union minister Maneka Gandhi vents out her feelings to Ashok Kumar. Salman Khan has been granted bail in the black buck (Chinkara) poaching case. What’s your reaction?I am very disappointed to see that Salman has got the bail. And he (Salman) is a convict. How can he can get bail? Moreover, this is not his first conviction but the second one. Many poor people (accused of poaching) are lying in jails as undertrials for years. Under the law if you get more than two years, you can’t get a bail. Not only that, this man, Salman is facing four more similar cases of poaching. Why there is a different law for rich and poor people. Do you think Salman’s celebrity status earned him the bail? Of course, it is a travesty of justice. It is for everyone to see. Look what happened in the first judgement, he was awarded a sentence of one year (by a lower court), where the minimum stipulated punishment is of five years. It looks as if his celebrity status is helping him out. And, Salman Khan has not just killed the animals but has run his car over poor people too. He also tried to break Aishwarya’s arm while she was shooting on the sets. He is insanely violent. I can’t understand how many times will this man (Salman) have to be convicted before he is put behind the bars. It is surprising to see a twice time convict coming out on bail. But don’t you think even ordinary poachers get off without any punishment, sometimes?Many poachers have got off because of their connivance with the local police. But, in Delhi hundreds of people in similar poaching cases are behind the bars because of the vigilant NGOs. Do you think this judgement will encourage the possible poachers of the endangered animals?It will encourage common poachers. If Pataudi (Mansoor Ali Khan) had gone in (the jail) he (Salman Khan) would have also gone in (the jail). Manavjit Singh Sandhu (renown shooter and Khel Ratna Awardee) has also escaped the punishment, so far. Do you think letting out Salman on bail will demoralize the people who risk their lives to fight the poachers?Definitely, it will demoralise such people who are working for the cause of the protection of the endangered animals. Don’t you think putting heavy fines on people accused of poaching would be better than putting them behind the bars?It is completely senseless to talk like this.
