Sanjay Dutt's early release gets Maharashtra government support

Mumbai: The state government on Monday filed an affidavit supporting the eight months’ remission given to Bollywood actor Sanjay Dutt in the 1993 bomb blasts case.

The affidavit stated that the star had not been given any special treatment, and he received the remission as per prison rules. The government also cited the rules under which Dutt had been granted remission, parole and furlough.

A division bench was hearing a petition filed by Pune resident Pradeep Bhalekar, who challenged the release of Dutt eight months before his sentence was supposed to end. The Bombay HC in June questioned the state over its ‘soft stance’ and asked the latter to mention the criterion for releasing him and parameters for judging his ‘good conduct’ while he was in and out of jail for most of his sentence. The court also enquired upon the decision-making and whether the DIG (prisons) was in the loop.