Former Pakistani-American actress Somy Ali has appealed to the Bishnoi community to pardon her Bollywood colleague and friend, Salman Khan, for poaching black bucks in 1998 in Rajasthan. This has divided the community which holds the wildlife species sacred and has been fighting a legal battle against Salman Khan since 25 years.
The Akhil Bharatiya Bishnoi Mahasabha, led by Devendra Budia, has offered to consider Salman’s apology in response to Somy’s plea. Budia said on May 13, “Among the 29 rules of our community, one is forgiveness. If Salman Khan comes to our temple, sits with the community members, takes an oath to protect the environment and wildlife, and makes an apology, we can think over it.”
Its splinter group, Bishnoi Tiger Force, however, has said that there is no room for forgiveness. In a video, BTF president Rampal Bhawa refers to Budia’s statement as being unwarranted and aimed at weakening the Bishnoi community’s spirit in its fight against poaching.
Salman was convicted and sentenced to five years in jail in 2018. He is currently out on bail.
Last week, in an interview with a media house, Somy said, she didn’t support hunting, but appealed the Bishnoi community to forget what happened in 1998 during a film shooting and move on. She sought forgiveness on behalf of the actor. Salman Khan’s Bombay home was last month attacked by gunmen linked to the Lawrence Bishnoi gang.