The Supreme Court on Tuesday held that Bollywood actor Sanjay Dutt will have to surrender on May 16 to serve the remainder of his sentence in the Mumbai blasts case of 1993.
And the apex court dismissed a last-ditch plea filed by two film producers seeking more time for the thespian’s surrender, in order to allow them to complete their ongoing film projects featuring him. “We had already said that no application for extension of time will be entertained,” the Bench said.
Also on Tuesday, Sanjay made an application before the TADA court here praying that he be allowed to surrender at the Yerawada prison in Pune.
Usually, convicts surrender before the court and are then taken to the local prison, which in Sanjay’s case may be the Arthur Road Jail.
Sanjay said he apprehended a threat to his life and hence wanted to surrender directly before the prison. And the application would come up for hearing on Wednesday.
Earlier on March 21, the Supreme Court had upheld Sanjay’s conviction by the TADA court under the Arms Act. However, the apex court had reduced his sentence to five years from the six originally awarded by the trial court.
Following his conviction, the actor approached the SC seeking six months to wind up his pending projects. But the court gave him only four weeks which would end on May 16. Also, the court while granting the reprieve had said it would be the final extension and no more applications seeking extension would be entertained. Sanjay now has to serve 42 months of the five-year sentence since he had already undergone 18 months in prison as an undertrial.