Salman Khan is playing emotional and patriotic card these days, be it onscreen or in real life. He appeared before a court here on Friday in connection with an 18-year-old blackbuck poaching case, pleaded "not guilty". The 51-year-old actor, to a question on religion posed by the court, said "I'm Hindu and Muslim both. I'm Bharatiya."

Salman and his "Hum Saath-Saath Hain" co-stars Saif Ali Khan, Neelam Kothari, Sonali Bendre and Tabu, pleaded "not guilty" in the case in a Jodhpur court.

During the course of hearing on Friday, Salman replied to as many as 65 questions posed by the court with regard to the allegations levelled by the prosecution witnesses.

To a question with regard to his religion, Salman, the son of popular screenwriter Salim Khan and Sushila Charak, said: "I'm Hindu and Muslim both. I'm Bharatiya". He subsequently said in English that "I'm an Indian".

Asked about the allegations levelled by the prosecution, the stars pleaded "not guilty".

"I used to be busy in the shooting and in the night I used to go to sleep as I was tired. In the night because of security reasons, I never used to go out. I deny all the charges. I have been falsely implicated," Salman told the court.

All the five bollywood actors are accused of poaching blackbucks on the midnight of October 1-2, 1998, during the shooting of "Hum Saath-Saath Hain".

Two blackbucks, a protected animal under the Wildlife Protection Act, were killed in the outskirts of Kankani village near Jodhpur.

Salman was accused of carrying and using illegal arms too, but recently the CJM court acquitted him of the charges.

The next hearing in the blackbucks poaching case is slated to be held on February 15 in the court of Chief Judicial Magistrate here when Salman Khan's counsel is expected to produce defence witnesses to counter the prosecution.