Actor Sanjay Dutt asks Supreme Court for six months to surrender

Mangalore Today News Network

New Delhi, Apr 15, 2013: Actor Sanjay Dutt has asked the Supreme Court to give him six more months before he is imprisoned to allow him to complete his film commitments. His case will be heard tomorrow.

The 53-year-old was sentenced in March to serve five years in jail for illegally owning weapons including an AK-56 in a case linked to the 1993 bomb blasts. He will have to serve a little over three years of that as he has already spent 18 months in prison.

The Supreme Court had ruled that he should be jailed by April 18. At an emotional press conference last month, Sanjay Dutt had said would not appeal against his sentence.

The actor is currently in the midst of several film shoots - according to some reports, between Rs. 70 to 100 crore are tied up in Bollywood projects fronted by him.

On March 21, the actor was convicted for  possessing an automatic rifle and a pistol that were supplied to him by men subsequently convicted in the 1993 bombings in Mumbai, in which more than 200 people were killed. But Mr Dutt was acquitted of the more serious charges of terrorism and conspiracy.

He has maintained that he knew nothing about the bombing plot and that he asked for the guns to protect his family after receiving threats during the city’s communal riots.

Three other petitioners in the Mumbai blasts case, including a 71-year-old woman, have also sought more time to surrender. Their cases will be heard by the court too tomorrow.

Courtesy: NDTV