Malaika Arora no longer a witness in Saif Ali Khan's 2012 hotel assault case: Report
In a recent development in the 2012 hotel assault case involving
Saif Ali Khan
, the
Mumbai Police
have removed actor
Malaika Arora
from the list of prosecution witnesses. During a hearing held on Wednesday at the magistrate's court, officials stated that Malaika does not support their case, leading to her exclusion from the witness lineup.
Malaika appeared in court with her lawyer, Archit Jaykar, after a bailable warrant was issued against her on April 7 for ignoring earlier summons. This wasn't the first time she faced such a warrant in connection with the ongoing 2012 hotel assault case involving Saif Ali Khan.
Despite her appearance in court, the Additional Public Prosecutor (APP) requested an adjournment, which was promptly denied by Magistrate K S Zanwar. Citing the age of the case and noting that Arora appeared only after 'due pursuasion,' the court emphasized the need to proceed. It also pointed out that two other witnesses, including her sister
Amrita Arora
, had recently testified—making the delay unjustifiable.
Following the proceedings, the prosecution submitted a formal request to drop Malaika as a witness, stating that she was unwilling to support the case. Magistrate K S Zanwar accepted the application and accordingly cancelled the previously issued bailable warrant against her.
With Arora no longer part of the case, the prosecution will now focus on its next key witness—NRI businessman Iqbal Sharma, the complainant in the 2012 hotel assault case.
The Additional Public Prosecutor (APP) requested that summons be sent to Sharma via email, which the court approved. The matter has been adjourned to August 22.
The case dates back to February 22, 2012, when Saif Ali Khan was dining at a luxury South Mumbai restaurant with
Kareena Kapoor
,
Karisma Kapoor
, Malaika Arora, Amrita Arora, and others. NRI businessman Iqbal Sharma, seated nearby with his family, allegedly raised concerns over the group's loud conversation.
A heated exchange followed, during which Sharma accused Saif of punching him and fracturing his nose. He also claimed that Saif and his companions assaulted his father-in-law, Raman Patel.
Saif Ali Khan has consistently maintained that Iqbal Sharma provoked the situation by using abusive language toward the women in their group. Following the altercation, Khan and his friends Shakeel Ladak and Bilal Amrohi were arrested but later granted bail. All three have been charge-sheeted under Section 325 of the Indian Penal Code, which deals with voluntarily causing grievous hurt.
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