Bhopal court upholds Monica Bedi acquittal
A district court in Bhopal has upheld the acquittal of Monica Bedi, former Bollywood starlet and mobster Abu Salem's companion for years, in a fake passport case.
A district court in Bhopal on Thursday upheld the acquittal of Monica Bedi, former Bollywood starlet and mobster Abu Salem's companion for years, in a fake passport case.
Bedi was asked to appear before the sessions court on Sep 3 following the prosecution's appeal for review of her acquittal by the Chief Judicial Magistrate court of possessing a fake passport.
On July 16, Chief Judicial Magistrate Ajay Shrivastava acquitted her of possessing a fake passport and other related charges. She was later taken to Hyderabad where she was to appear in connection with another case of having another fake passport.
The Bhopal police (the prosecution) appealed for a review of the court verdict on Aug 8.
The Bhopal case dates back to Nov 28, 2001, when the crime branch of the city police registered a case against Salem, his wife Samira Jumani and Bedi for allegedly having fake passports made at the Regional Passport Office here, using the names Danish Baig, Rubina Baig and Fauzia Osman respectively.
Bedi and Salem were arrested in a shopping mall in Lisbon on Sep 18, 2002, following an Interpol notice issued at the behest of the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI). The two were extradited to India on Nov 11, 2005.
Salem is facing many charges, including masterminding the March 1993 terror blasts in Mumbai that killed 257 people.
