Salman Khan's sentence suspended by Bombay High court

MUMBAI: In a huge relief to Bollywood superstar Salman Khan, the Bombay High Court today suspended his 5-year sentence in the 2002 hit-and-run case and granted him bail pending his appeal against conviction.

"He has been on bail for a long time and his liberty was not curtailed. Normally, in such cases, the appeal is admitted and an accused is granted bail," Justice Abhay Thipsay said, while staying his conviction and granting him bail.

The judge directed him to surrender before the trial court and furnish a fresh bail bond of Rs 30,000.

Thipsay had on May 6 granted 48-hour interim bail to the actor, hours after he was convicted and sentenced to five years rigorous imprisonment by the trial court on the ground that he had not been supplied with a detailed order explaining the reasons for his conviction.

The term of interim bail was to expire today.