Two days after the Bombay High Court ordered Maharashtra government to justify its decision to release Sanjay Dutt from the prison early in relation to the 1993 serial blasts case, a media report has surfaced saying that the state’s prison department has stated it followed the government’s rules and didn’t provide the Bollywood star any privilege.
The Bombay High Court on Monday asked the Maharashtra government to justify the decision to release Dutt prior to the completion of his sentence. The actor was released in February 2016, eight months before his sentence in the 1993 serial blast case was supposed to end, on account of good behaviour. A division bench of justices RM Sawant and Sadhana Jadhav was hearing a public interest litigation by Pune resident Pradeep Bhalekar challenging the regular paroles and furloughs granted to Dutt when he was serving his sentence.
The state government told the court that jail authorities consent to an early release for prisoners who display exemplary conduct while in jail. However, it said the usual practice was to “grant them a remittance of 114 days” that comes to about three-and-a-half months. “We just want to understand your decision making process,” the court said in return.
Dutt was serving a five-year sentence in Yerawada central prison in Pune for illegal possession and destruction of an AK-56 rifle in 1993 serial blasts case. Even while he was serving the sentence, Dutt had been out of prison for about six months on frequent furlough leaves and parole.
The matter will come up for further hearing next week.