An Indian court has cleared Bollywood actor Salman Khan of using unlicensed arms while hunting for rare blackbuck antelopes in a western India wildlife preserve 18 years ago.

The 51-year-old star was present in the court in Jodhpur, in Rajasthan state, as Chief Judicial Magistrate Dalpat Singh Rajpurohit announced his acquittal.

His lawyer, Hastimal Saraswat, said the magistrate dismissed the charge against Khan due to lack of evidence. If convicted, he would have faced up to seven years in prison.

The prosecution argued that the licence for a revolver and a rifle allegedly used by Khan had expired in 1998.

The Indian court system is notoriously slow, and it often takes years and even decades for a case to go to trial.