Superstar Salman Khan has been sentenced to 5 years in jail after being held guilty of killing blackbuck while on a film shoot in Rajasthan 20 years ago. He was addressed by a Jodhpur called a "habitual offender". The 52-year-old actor was charged in 1998 with hunting two blackbucks while shooting for Hum Saath Saath Hain, however, his co-stars in that film Saif Ali Khan, Tabu, Sonali Bendre and Neelam, have been acquitted for lack of evidence.

Salman was accused of hunting rare antelopes in Bhagoda ki Dhani in Kankani village near Jodhpur on October 1-2, 1998. The actor has been convicted under Section 51 of the Wildlife (Protection) Act, which carries the maximum punishment of six years and minimum one-year jail term. As of now, he has been sentenced five years of jail term and Rs 10,000 penalty.

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Reportedly, Salman's sister Alvira Agnihotri and Arpita Khan Sharma reportedly broke down in court. The actor will now go to the Jodhpur Central Jail.  Forr the uninitiated, in 2006, he spent five nights in the jail.

Earlier in the day, Salman's co-star Neelam's husband Samir Soni expressed his mixed emotions of his wife's release and the superstar's jail term. "I am happy for Neelam. But I am disappointed for Salman Khan. I don't know why he is being singled out. I think he is paying the price for being a star," shared Soni.

The fight turns out to be tough for the actor and the film industry alike as a huge amount of money is riding on Salman. While he managed to finish the shooting of Race 3 mere three days back, his big-budget films Dangal 3, Bharat and highly anticipated reality TV show Dus Ka Dum are hanging mid-air.

As for now, uncertainty is looming over the fate of the superstar who has been embroiled in this legal battle for more than 2 decades.