Confusion prevailed on Thursday over the extension sought by Bollywood actor Sanjay Dutt on his furlough. The actor, who turned up at Pune’s Yerwada Central Jail to surrender in the evening, left for Mumbai after spending less than an hour on the jail premises. A Minister in the State government said his request was still pending and there was no need for him to get back to jail pending its disposal. Mr. Dutt was granted a 14-day furlough by the State prison authorities on December 23 last.
Earlier in the day, Mr. Dutt bade farewell to his family in Mumbai after his leave came to an end and it was rumoured that his plea for an extension was rejected by the authorities. “We had requested an extension of my furlough on December 27 and accordingly sent a plea to the prison authorities, which is still under process. The law stipulates that one should surrender before the authorities if an extension is not granted. I am going to do so now,” the actor said before departing.
“When Sanjay reached Yerwada, we heard that the Minister of State for Home Ram Shinde had made a statement that his furlough extension application was under consideration and he need not surrender,” the actor’s lawyer Hitesh Jain told The Hindu. “We then submitted a letter to the prison authorities requesting them to inform us formally whether the extension has been allowed or rejected. If required, Sanjay will surrender before the jail authorities within 24 hours.”
Mr. Shinde could not be reached for comment. Yerwada Central Jail Superintendent Yogesh Desai refused to take calls, but prison sources said senior officials were still vacillating on Mr. Dutt’s request.
The actor’s repeated leaves and furloughs had sparked massive protests and Yerwada prison authorities were accused of according Mr. Dutt “celebrity treatment.” The Maharashtra government ordered a probe on December 25 into the repeated furloughs granted to the actor between May 2013 and May 2014.
Mr. Dutt is serving the remainder of his five-year sentence for illegal possession and destruction of an AK-56 rifle before the 1993 Mumbai blasts.
