The Suprme Court today upheld the conviction of filmstar Sanjay Dutt for possessing illegal and dangerous weaponws after the 1993 Mumbai serial blasts.257 people had died in the 13 serial blasts in the city. Dutt was convicted under the Arms Act, but the court reduced Dutt's six year jail term given by TADA court to five years. Delivering its judgement in the 1993 Mumbai serial blasts case, the court ruled out Dutt's release on probation.The apex court said that the circumstances and nature of offence was too serious and that the evidence and material perused by a TADA court in arriving at the decision against Dutt was correct. The apex Court upheld the death sentence of Yakub Abdul Razak Memon.
Supreme Court said that convicts who are on bail, will have to surrender within four weeks.The Supreme Court commuted the death sentence of 10 other convicts to life imprisonment on the ground that the convicts were behind bars for 20 years and their economic condition was weak.
The court upheld the life sentence of 16 out of 18 convicts sentenced by the TADA court. But the life sentence of Ashrafur Rehman Azimulla was reduced to 10 years while that of Imtiyaz Yunusmiya Ghavte to jail term already undergone.
The court maintained that that life term convicts would remain in jail till their death. It dismissed all appeals of the convicts except that of Mubina alias Baya Moosa Bhiwandiwala and that of Mulchand Sampatraj Shah.
Mentioning Pakistan's role in the blasts, the court said that the training of convicts in Pakistan materialised in 1993 blasts. The Supreme Court said, that Pakistan's intelligence agency ISI was also involved in the 1993 blasts. The accused were trained in bomb making and to handle sophisticated weapons in Pakistan, The court said that the police, customs and coast guards are also to be blamed for 1993 blasts.