The Maharashtra government told the Bombay High Court on Thursday that it had not flouted any rules by granting actor Sanjay Dutt an early release from prison in the 1993 blasts case, ANI reported. The state administration said it had no objection to sending Dutt back to prison if the court thought that his early release violated rules.
The court, however, said that it only wanted to ensure that the due process of law was followed by the government, the Hindustan Times reported.
The court also asked the government to submit a fresh affidavit explaining how it defined good behaviour in Sanjay Dutt’s case.
In June, the Bombay High Court had asked the Maharashtra government to justify its decision to grant Dutt an early release from prison. On account of his “good behaviour” in Pune’s Yerawada jail, Dutt was released in February 2016, eight months before his release date. The actor was on bail during the trial.
Dutt had surrendered in May 2016 after the Supreme Court upheld his conviction. He was sentenced to five years in jail in 2007 after he was found guilty of illegally possessing an AK-56 rifle and a pistol, acquired from those involved in the 1993 serial blasts in Mumbai.
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