Salman Khan to unveil statue at Tussauds

Bollywood actor Salman Khan, who has been sentenced to five years in jail for poaching, has been given permission by the Jodhpur High Court to travel to London for the unveiling of his statue at Madam Tussauds Wax Museum, his lawyer said.

Dipesh Mehta, the actor's lawyer, confirmed that he would fly to London January 14.

"He will unveil the statue the same day and return the next day," Mehta said.

Salman's wax statue will join the statues of other Bollywood stars like Amitabh Bachchan, Shah Rukh Khan and Aishwarya Rai.

The actor, currently out on bail, was found guilty of poaching a chinkara, an endangered species of deer, near Jodhpur in September 1998 while filming for the movie Hum Saath Saath Hain.

A lower court convicted Salman for the offence on February 17, 2007.

The Bishnoi community of Rajasthan, traditional custodians of the natural environment, had taken up the matter against Salman.