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Sanjay Dutt ‘not a terrorist’, but guilty for possession of arms
It is a day of mixed fortunes for Sanjay Dutt.
BY A CORRESPONDENT
November 28, 2006
India’s favourite Munna is paying for his stupidity. The verdict the country was anxiously awaiting is finally out. Superstar-actor Sanjay Dutt who turned a rage among the cine buff for his roles like Khalnayak and Munnabhai has been pronounced guilty under the Arms Act for possessing weapons.
However, the big relief for the actor came when the special TADA court acquitted him of terrorism and conspiracy charges in the 1993 Mumbai serial blasts.
Sanjay Dutt who got the court’s approval that he is not a terrorist, also was later granted bail following his conviction under the Arms Act. The court has asked him to surrender by December 19. The verdict has come as a relief for the 47-year-old actor as he was not held guilty under the Terrorist and Disruptive Activities Act (TADA) for which he could have faced life-imprisonment.
Sanjay was arrested and jailed for 16 months soon after the 1993 bombings in Mumbai. He was arrested then for having allegedly received an AK-56 rifle, ammunition and hand-grenades, which were smuggled for the Mumbai blasts by underworld don Dawood Ibrahim, the main-accused in the case.
Sanjay had then confessed that he got the weapons to protect his family as he had received threatening calls. However, he later retracted the confession. Accepting Sanjay's confession, Judge Kode observedthat considering matters in his confession and also taking into account certain admissions from other evidence, I accept the stand of Sanjay of acquiring and possessing weapons for self-defence. Sanjay now faces anywhere between a year and three years in prison.
The TADA court meanwhile held the actor’s friends Yusuf Nallawalla and Kersi Adajenia guilty under the Arms Act and Section 201 of the IPC. The CBI had said both of them had helped Sanjay in destroying an AK-56 rifle by melting it in a foundry and disposing of the remains in the sea. However they were acquitted for TADA charges of aiding and abetting terrorist acts and possession of arms.
The Mumbai bombings of 1993 had left 250 people killed and over 700 injured.
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