Dutt gets bail extension till Thursday
A special court Tuesday extended by two days the bail of Bollywood actor Sanjay Dutt, held guilty of possessing illegal weapons after the 1993 Mumbai bombings.
The special TADA court allowed Dutt interim relief till Thursday following an application on his behalf seeking extension of bail till the court sentences him.
Dutt, 47, who is being under the now scrapped Terrorist and Disruptive (Prevention) Act (TADA), was Nov 28 found guilty of violating the Arms Act and granted bail till Tuesday.
He was, however, cleared of conspiracy in the 1993 blasts that killed 257 people in Mumbai, India’s financial hub.
Dutt’s lawyer Satish Mansinge requested judge Pramod Kode to consider the provision of the Probation of Offenders Act, which allows a convict the benefit of staying out of prison on grounds of good conduct.
“If taken into custody he would not be able to seek relief under the Probation of Offenders Act,” Mansinge said.
Special Public Prosecutor Ujjwal Nikam opposed the defence plea saying: “We are definitely opposing the probation under the provision of the Offenders Act.”
But Judge Kode granted the bail extension and said: “The court will hear the arguments on further extension of bail and also consider the provisions of the Probation of Offenders Act to see if Dutt can be granted probation or not. The court will hear all bail applications including Dutt’s Thursday.”
Dutt pleaded that he needed to make arrangements for his daughter Trishala’s education in the US.
She is coming to India on Saturday for her Christmas vacation and he needed to spend time with her. Trishala studies law at the John Day College of Justice in the US.
He argued that his father, Sunil Dutt, had died without making a will and he needed to manage his family properties.
The actor told the judge that he had incomplete film projects in hand and desired to finish his assignments so that the producers did not suffer losses. He pleaded for time to complete his assignments.
The ongoing film projects include Abbas Mustan’s “Mr Fraud”, Sanjay Gupta’s “Shootout” and Inder Kumar’s “Dhamaal”.
The TADA court, which has been giving out verdicts since Sep 12, has found 100 of the 123 accused guilty and acquitted 23. The court is expected to deliver the remaining sentences in January.
— IANS
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