NEW DELHI: 03-Nov-2007.
It is going to be a black Diwali for actor Sanjay Dutt, with the Supreme Court fixing November 20 as the date for taking up his plea for bail.
The court sought CBI's response to the actor's plea for bail in the Arms Act case in which he has been convicted and sentenced for six years.
The actor has been in jail since October 22. Significantly, Dutt's counsel did not seem excessively anxious to get him out immediately in time for Diwali celebrations as they argued for his bail.
Senior advocate V R Manohar, appearing for Dutt, pleaded that his client is among the only four who were convicted under the Arms Act, whereas the rest 96 were sentenced under the anti-terror law, Tada, for their involvement in the Mumbai bomb blasts case.
He is not involved in the bomb blast case at all and has no serious charges against him, Monohar argued. Appearing for the CBI, additional solicitor-general Gopal Subramaniam said the agency would file its response to Dutt's petition.
The only urgency for early release of the actor on bail was visible when the counsel requested the court to fix hearing of the bail plea immediately after November 12 when the court reopens after the Diwali break. Manohar wanted the case to be heard on November 13, but the court fixed the hearing for November 20.
Neither the ground for suspension of the sentence during the pendency of Dutt's appeal, nor his release under Probation of Offenders Act, was mentioned by a battery of lawyers from Mumbai who were present when the bail application was taken up for urgent hearing.
The petition, filed through counsel Hari Shankar K, argued that Dutt had to undergo a 14-year-long trial, and cited an apex court judgment that had held that "agony of protracted trial itself constitutes a sentence.
" The known facts - that he had been on bail for over 12 years, never violated a single bail condition and that he has already undergone incarceration of 17 months - were mentioned in the petition. In addition, Dutt said he is a permanent resident of Mumbai "with deep roots in society" and that there was no chance of his absconding in the event of apex court granting him bail.
His incarceration is causing a great deal of hardship to himself and his family, said the petition filed through his power-of-attorney holder, Punkaj Kharbanda. Last time, sister Priya Dutt had acted as his pairokar .
By Shamsheer (TofIndia)
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