My biggest relief was when court said 'you are not a terrorist': Sanjay Dutt
Mumbai: Putting behind the torrid times since his conviction in an arms case related to 1993 Mumbai blasts, Bollywood actor Sanjay Dutt today walked out a free man from the Yerawada Central prison here after being granted remission in his five-year sentence.
After visiting Siddhivinayak Temple and his mother Nargis Dutt's grave, Munnabhai met the press, where he said his father Sunil Dutt's only fight was to see his son free.
He said, "I miss my father today. If he would have been alive, he would have been the happiest person. His only fight was to see his son free. Today, I can say dad I am free. I love you."
Emotional Sanjay even said that though he is a free man, it is still tough for him to believe the fact and hence, needs some time to sink in to the reality. He said, "For 23 years I wanted to be a free man. I wanted to taste freedom and today, finally the day has come that I walked out of the jail as a free man. But it's not sinking in me, I think I am on a payroll leave or something, but I know I will come to terms with it."
Sanjay also mentioned that since, his mother left them when they were very young, he felt it was his duty to tell her in person that he's now a free man.
In the morning, he saluted the tri-colour atop the prison building and bent to touch the soil in full media glare. When asked about it, he said, "I am proud to be an Indian, that is why I kissed the earth and saluted the tricolour when I came out."
Talking about his wife Manyata, who has been with him through thick and thin, Sanjay said, "She is not my better half, but my best half. I even gave the money earned Rs. 440 in the jail to my wife, as a good husband."
There were reports that Salman deployed four bodyguards to ensure that everything function smoothly. Talking about Salman, Sanjay said, "Salman is like a younger brother and has always been one. I pray that he becomes a bigger superstar."
Towards the end of the press conference, he made a personal request to the media to not address him as a terrorist. He said, "My biggest relief was when court said 'you are not a terrorist'. I would request to the press, I am convicted in the arms act, not in the bomb blasts case. Please don't portray me as that."
Sanjay was arrested on April 19, 1993, for possession and destruction of an AK-56 rifle, which was a part of cache of arms and explosives which landed in India prior to the serial blasts of March 1993.
During the investigation and the marathon trial, he spent 18 months in jail. On July 31, 2007, the TADA court in Mumbai sentenced him to six years' rigorous imprisonment under the Arms Act and imposed a fine of Rs 25,000. In 2013, the Supreme Court upheld the ruling but reduced the sentence to five years. During his imprisonment, he was granted parole of 90 days in December 2013 and again for 30 days later.
