Attorney General of India GE Vahanvati on Wednesday denied media reports that the government was planning to move the Supreme Court on terror charges against actor and Samajwadi Party (SP) leader Sanjay Dutt.
Dutt was acquitted of the charges under the now-repealed Terrorist and
Disruptive Activities (Prevention) Act (TADA) in 2007 by a Mumbai special court.
However, he was sentenced to six years’ imprisonment for possessing illegal arms in the 1993 Mumbai serial blasts case.
However, Law Minister M Veerappa Moily said on Wednesday the matter did not concern his ministry.
“It is for the home ministry to decide. The law officers decided on a purely legal basis,” he said.
Vahanvati told Hindustan Times: “It is baseless. My opinion was sought at least 10 days ago and I had stated there was no basis for filing a special leave petition in the Supreme Court.”
“I concur with the opinion given by my colleague Gopal Subramaniam (now Solicitor General) last year that it is not a fit case for appeal,” Vahanvati said.
Dutt’s appeal challenging the Mumbai special court judgment on imprisonment is pending before the Supreme Court.
He is the only accused in the Mumbai blasts case against whom the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) did not file an appeal for either enhancing the jail sentence or overturning the court decision to dismiss TADA charges against Dutt.
The SP has been highly critical of the UPA government for its handling of the Dutt case.
The actor had approached the apex court in March, seeking permission to contest the Lok Sabha election.
His petition, however, was dismissed.