Sanjay Dutt granted 14-day furlough, can be extended by another two weeks

Actor Sanjay Dutt, who is currently serving a sentence in Pune's Yerawada jail after being convicted for illegal possession of arms in the 1993 serial blasts case, was granted a 14-day furlough on Dec 23.

Actor Sanjay Dutt, who is currently serving a sentence in Pune's Yerawada jail after being convicted for illegal possession of arms in the 1993 serial blasts case, was granted a 14-day furlough on Dec 23.

Bollywood-actor-Sanjay-Dutt-at-his-residence-PTI

Confirming the development, Yerawada prison superintendent Yogesh Desai said, "Dutt will be released in a day or two after completing the formalities."

Furlough is an annual leave granted to prisoners to meet their relatives. The actor had filed an application seeking a 14-day furlough, which was put before the deputy inspector general of police (prisons), who is the sanctioning authority for leave. Sources said the actor was eligible for furlough.

Furlough can be granted upon issuance of a mandatory no-objection certificate (NOC) by the police. In Dutt's case, sources said, a close relative had already deposited a surety of Rs10,000 with the Khar police station and got the NOC.

"Around two months ago, the actor had applied for furlough. We have sent the application with the required recommendations to the office of the DIG (prisons). Dutt had taken furlough around a year ago and is eligible for the same this year too," a prison official told HT in the first week of December.

Prison officials said furlough was the right of every prisoner and unlike parole, no specific reason was necessary to grant the leave. "The basic concept behind furlough is that while serving the sentence, the prisoner should spend some days in society," the official said.

In October 2013, Sanjay Dutt was out on furlough for four weeks. Within a short span, he was granted a parole of another 30 days on medical grounds.