Toeing the line of his political allies — the Shiv Sena and the Bharatiya Janata Party — Republican Party of India president Ramdas Athawale on Thursday advocated the denial of clemency for actor Sanjay Dutt.
“Nobody is bigger than the law or the country… He [Mr. Dutt] is a culprit and his crime has been proved,” he said in a statement issued here.
The law was equal for all and Mr. Dutt should accept the Supreme Court’s verdict with humility, he said.
The RPI chief condemned the fact that some politicians were disappointed by the verdict and had joined the clamour for leniency for the actor.
“Under any circumstance, the Supreme Court should not pardon Sanjay Dutt,” Mr. Athawale said.
