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| News Analysis:Sanjay Dutt’s unwise Friends harming his case | |
By Yash Bhasin
“A wise foe is better than the unwise friend”, goes an old English adage. Al those, including the former supreme court Judge and presently Chairman of Press Council of India, Justice Markandey Katju who have been publically pleading for pardon to film star Sanjay Dutt, whose sentence in the case of 1993 serial bomb blasts has been upheld by the supreme court, have only prejudiced his case. Instead of helping him, they have actually only harmed him, making it more complicated for the pardoning authority to take a right decision in the matter, uninfluenced by any pressure and exterior considerations.
While Sanjay Dutt was exonerated of the charge of his direct involvement in the serial bomb blasts trigged by terrorist in Mumbai in 1993, killing over 174 people and injuring about 1000 others, he was convicted under the illegal arms possession Act and was awarded six year jail term. He was granted bail after spending one and half year in the prison, with his appeal against his conviction ultimately going to the supreme court. The apex court upheld his conviction but reduced the sentence from 6 years to 5 years, which includes the already served sentence of one and half year by him.
While the pitch for his pardon by Justice Markandey Katju and many others, including those from the Bollywood, has set in motion a debate over the subject, the media, mainly the electronic one which goes in the air 24/7 hours, has got a quite juicy subject to debate. Even some political parties and politician have not lacked behind in taking the sides. The judicial verdict has been subjected to public scrutiny. Outside trial of the case and more so media trial has been set in motion.
Under these circumstances, if the case goes for granting pardon to the President, any decision by him will be subjected to criticism of bowing before public pressure and not upholding the principal of equality before law for all the high and low, influential and unresourceful. The situation that has been created has rather made for the pardoning authority to take decision in favour of the convict rather difficult.
However, this goes to the credit of or wise counseling having prevailed upon Sanjay Dutt himself, who has ruled out filing mercy petition and seeking pardon. Instead, he is prepared to go to jail and submit before the SC verdict, though with a heavy heart. After Sanjay Dutt taking the wise decision to uphold the law to take its own course and the principal of equality before law, it could be expected that the debate over the subject would come to end and those pleading for his pardon will let him decide his own course and undergo the ordeal, which will wash off his sin if at all committed. But Justice Katju is still adamant on moving mercy petition on his behalf to the Maharashtra Governor and even the President of India. This is like “Madehi Susat, Gawa Chust” (while the accused is complacent, the witness is more active). To justify his plea for seeking pardon for Sanjay Dutt, Justice Kathju has stated that he would also move a petition for pardoning an other accused in the matter Zaibunisa Kazi, a female convict of 75 year old, who too is awarded the sentence for almost the same offense. He has done so after the daughter of the convict had written him a letter pleading for taking the case of her mother too. Will Justice Katju be taking the cases of all the convicts in this case as well as in many other cases, which may be having equally or stronger reason for granting them the pardon, is a million dollar question?
(The writer is senior Journalist of J&K)
(Opinions expressed in write-ups/articles/Letters are the sole responsibility of the authors and they may not represent the scoopnews.in)
Editor, Scoop News
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