By IANS
Pune : Popular film star Sanjay Dutt, convicted in the 1993 Mumbai blasts case, was spending yet another night in Yerawada Jail here Wednesday as bail formalities took more time than expected, leaving somewhat dejected his fans and mediapersons gathered outside the prison.
The processing of the bail amount and the surety at the special anti-terror TADA court in Mumbai took a little more time than anticipated after Special Judge Pramod Kode issued release orders for Dutt and 16 others who were granted bail by the Supreme Court Tuesday.
To ensure that the convicts are granted bail at the earliest, the apex court had directed that the orders be sent to the anti-terror court in Mumbai through email.
The special judge had fixed the bail amount and surety for the 17 on par with that furnished by them during the course of the trial.
Dutt had paid Rs.500,000 earlier as surety when he was granted bail for the first time by the Supreme Court in 1995. He will have to furnish the same amount this time.
The actor, especially remembered for “Munnabhai M.B.B.S” and “Lage Raho Munna Bhai”, is sentenced to six years’ rigorous imprisonment under the Arms Act for possessing illegal weapons just ahead of the serial blasts in Mumbai that killed 257 people.
He has been at Yerawada Jail since Oct 22. His lawyer Satish Maneshinde is expected to get the release order and travel to Pune to hand it over to prison authorities.
However, it was unlikely that the actor would be released later Wednesday as jail inmates are not released after the sunset.
Earlier, when he was granted interim bail by the Supreme Court, Dutt was released only early in the morning after completion of the formalities.