JODHPUR: Bollywood superstar Salman Khan on Thursday pleaded not guilty in a long-standing case that alleges he used unlicensed arms to shoot antelopes in western India, saying he was framed.

The actor is accused of using weapons with an expired license to target black bucks in a protected forest area, where hunting the animals is illegal, in 1998.

Khan, wearing a floral shirt and sunglasses, said in court that forest officials had pressured him to sign a statement saying he had procured the arms from a contact in Mumbai.

“I am innocent and have been framed by the forest officials,” Khan said in his plea to the judicial magistrate in a Jodhpur district court.

The Bollywood actor was previously found guilty of poaching endangered gazelles in a separate case in 2006 and is appealing a year-long jail sentence.

Additional Public Prosecutor Dinesh Tiwari said the court had given Khan, 50, a chance to produce witnesses or evidence in support of his defense in the arms case on April 4.

“If he does so, they will be examined in the court otherwise the case will be listed for final arguments,” said Tiwari.