Hearing on 1993 convicts' plea deferred till Tuesday
Mar 12, 2007 - 8:29:02 PM
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He was arrested in April 1993 a month after the blasts rocked Mumbai and has spent nearly 16 months in jail in two stretches since then.
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By IANS,
[RxPG] Mumbai, March 12 - A designated anti-terror court Monday heard arguments on the pleas of 69 people convicted for their role in the 1993 Mumbai serial bombing, who are seeking legal parity with co-accused Bollywood actor Sanjay Dutt.
The special court of Terrorist and Disruptive Activities - Acts - of Judge Pramod Kode adjourned the hearing till Tuesday as the arguments were inconclusive.
Kode said: 'Defence can continue the arguments Tuesday and then I will hear the prosecution side.'
Forty eight-year-old Dutt has been convicted for possessing illegal weapons in the wake of the Mumbai serial bombings but is seeking suspension of his sentence on grounds of good behaviour.
Sixty-nine of the 100 people, convicted for their roles in the March 12, 1993 Mumbai serial bombing, are seeking legal parity with Dutt.
They argued that they too do not fall under the now-repealed TADA and be treated at par with the actor, who is seeking to evade the jail term on the grounds of good behaviour, under the provisions of the Probation of Offenders Act -, 1958.
The convicts have also pleaded for the court's direction for their retrial and subsequent conviction under various provisions of the Arms Act and the Indian Penal Code - like Dutt.
Dutt was convicted in Nov 2006 for possessing illegal weapons but was absolved of conspiracy charge.
As many as 100 of the 123 accused have been convicted under TADA and various other sections of IPC.
The Central Bureau of Investigation -, the prosecuting agency in the case, has sought death penalty for 44 of the convicts who were found guilty of conspiracy and other heinous charges under TADA.
Under the Arms Act, Dutt faces five to 10 years' jail term. The actor, who already possessed licensed pistols, had acquired an AK-56 allegedly from mobster Abu Salem's aide Ibrahim Mussa in Jan 1993 as he thought he needed self-protection.
He was arrested in April 1993 a month after the blasts rocked Mumbai and has spent nearly 16 months in jail in two stretches since then.
The 1993 bombings, that had rocked India's financial and entertainment capital, had claimed 257 lives, besides maiming hundreds and destroying property worth Rs. 300 million.
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