New Delhi: Hope floated for Bollywood star Sanjay Dutt late on Tuesday after Union Information and Broadcasting Minister PR Dasmunsi came to his defence and said all efforts should be made to enable the actor get 'relief' from the highest judiciary.
Dasmunsi expressed 'deep shock and surprise' over the conviction of Dutt in the 1993 Mumbai blasts case, saying he has suffered for 'no intentional fault of his'. The minister said Sanjay Dutt's "personal conduct and behaviour was an example for the young generation."
Dutt was sentenced to six-years' rigorous imprisonment under the Arms Act by the designated TADA court in Mumbai on Tuesday. The judge also imposed a fine of Rs 25,000 on Dutt, in lieu of which he will face an additional six-month imprisonment.
Dutt was jailed under the Arms Act for illegal possession of an AK-56 assault rifle and a pistol.
The Dutt family is closely linked to the Congress party as his father Sunil Dutt was a long-time party MP from North-West Mumbai, a seat now represented by Sanjay Dutt's sister Priya Dutt.
Dasmunsi said he believed in the judiciary, but felt that "in a civil society time has come to gauge the parameters for an unintentional fault, for which Dutt had already suffered enough."
Sanjay Dutt's contribution and mass appeal to society through the film industry has been significant, he said. "All efforts should be made to approach and appeal at the highest forum of judiciary to secure relief to him," the Union minister said.
Earlier in the day, Sanjay Dutt's lawyers said they would move the Supreme Court seeking relief for him. Dutt's counsel Satish Maneshinde said as soon as the required papers are ready, the actor's legal team would exercise the right to appeal and move the Supreme Court seeking relief.
He, however, declined to specify when they intended to file the appeal. An operational order of the sentence is expected and it generally takes at least two days after an appeal for the matter to come up for hearing before the Supreme Court, Maneshinde said.
He said the lawyers had prepared Dutt for the likelihood of his going to jail in the 1993 Mumbai serial blasts case. "We had prepared him," Maneshinde told reporters when asked for his reaction to the six-year jail term given earlier in the day by the Special TADA court here.
Dutt's family also said they will explore all legal options to get relief for the Bollywood star. "We will explore our legal options at this point and proceed accordingly," Dutt's sisters Priya and Namrata along with their husbands Kumar Gourav and Owen Roncon said in a joint statement.
Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister RR Patil, however, hailed the verdict of the designated TADA court, saying "it proved that everybody is equal before the law."
"Be it a celebrity or somebody else... today's verdict shows that everyone is equal before law," Patil, who also holds the home portfolio, said. The court has also praised police work in the case, Patil said.
(With PTI inputs)
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