The Mumbai police have dropped actor Malaika Arora as a prosecution witness in the 2012 hotel assault case involving actor Saif Ali Khan, stating that she does not support their case. The decision was made during a hearing on Wednesday in the magistrate’s court.
Arora appeared in court along with her lawyer, Archit Jaykar, following a bailable warrant issued against her on April 7 for failing to respond to previous summons. Notably, this was not the first time such a warrant had been issued against her in the case.
Despite her appearance, the Additional Public Prosecutor (APP) initially sought an adjournment. However, Magistrate K S Zanwar rejected the request, observing that the case is “very old” and that Arora was present in court after “due pursuation.” The court also noted that the prosecution had recently examined two other witnesses, including Malaika’s sister, Amrita Arora, making the adjournment request untenable.
Subsequently, the prosecution filed an application to formally drop Malaika Arora as a witness, citing her unwillingness to support the case. Accepting the request, Magistrate Zanwar cancelled the bailable warrant issued against her.
The prosecution will now turn to the complainant, NRI businessman Iqbal Sharma, as its next key witness. The APP requested that summons be issued to Sharma via email, a move the court approved. The matter has now been adjourned to August 22.
The case stems from a February 22, 2012, incident at a high-end South Mumbai restaurant where Saif Ali Khan was dining with Kareena Kapoor, Karisma Kapoor, Malaika Arora, Amrita Arora, and others. Sharma, seated nearby with his family, reportedly objected to the group’s loud conversation. An altercation ensued, and Sharma later accused Khan of punching him and fracturing his nose, and alleged that Khan and his friends also assaulted his father-in-law, Raman Patel.
Khan, however, has maintained that Sharma provoked the group by using abusive language toward the women. Khan, along with friends Shakeel Ladak and Bilal Amrohi, was arrested following the incident and later released on bail. All three have been charge-sheeted under Section 325 of the Indian Penal Code, which pertains to voluntarily causing grievous hurt.
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