Salman Khan
© AFP/File Sebastian D SouzaJODHPUR, India (AFP) - "The court has sentenced Salman Khan to one year's imprisonment. He also has to pay a fine of 5,000 rupees (113 dollars)," his lawyer Vimal Sarswat told AFP on Friday.
The actor would appeal and apply for immediate bail, the lawyer said.
Khan, 40, who enjoys a massive following in India, was accused of poaching the protected species in the Jodhpur district of Rajasthan in September, 1998.
The lawyer said the eight other accused, including actor Satish Shah, were acquitted.
Shah said he was relieved the case was over.
"I have been making rounds of this court for the past eight years, I am very happy that I have been acquitted," he said.
For Khan, however, three other related cases of poaching deer in Jodphur and possession of unlicensed firearms are pending.
One of those cases, in which a host of other Bollywood stars are also accused, is due to be heard on Monday.
Actresses Tabu and Neelam, who both use only one name, Sonali Bendre and leading actor Saif Ali Khan also face charges arising from incidents while they were filming "Hum Saath Saath Hain" (We are all together) in Jodhpur in 1998.
Khan is no stranger to controversy. He also faces charges of manslaughter after a road accident in 2002 left one person dead and four injured.
The actor has denied allegations that he was at the wheel, drunk and had no license when his car ran over people sleeping on a sidewalk in western Mumbai, home to the country's film industry.
Last year he was cleared of charges of underworld retribution against his former girlfriend, the actress Aishwarya Rai. He said that a secretly taped telephone conversation between the two, in which he reportedly made a threat, did not contain his voice.
Khan has often denied media reports that he assaulted Rai, a former Miss World.
Bollywood actor Vivek Oberoi has also accused Khan of making threatening calls to him and Rai. Rai was reported to be dating Oberoi after she split with Khan.
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