Sanjay Dutt is a great man: Digvijaya Singh

Senior Congress leader says the actor had been "foolish" for getting involved with the accused in the 1993 Mumbai serial blasts but he still regarded him as a "great man".

Congress general secretary Digvijaya Singh on Monday said actor Sanjay Dutt had been "foolish" for getting involved with the accused in the 1993 Mumbai serial blasts but he still regarded him as a "great man".

The-Supreme-Court-sentenced-Sanjay-Dutt-to-five-years-imprisonment-on-March-21-in-connection-with-possession-of-illegal-arms-He-has-been-asked-to-surrender-to-the-law-within-four-weeks-HT-Photo

"Sanjay Dutt just acted foolish," Singh was quoted by CNN-IBN as saying. Singh told the TV news channel that Dutt was being targeted because of his late father Sunil Dutt's efforts to create communal harmony. Singh's statement may create controversy while Dutt's friends and supporters are building a campaign to have his prison sentence in the serial blasts case reduced.

On March 21, the Supreme Court upheld the conviction of Sanjay in the Arms Act violation case in the 1993 Mumbai blasts case and sent him to five years' imprisonment. He was asked to surrender in four weeks.

Dutt, who was convicted for illegally possessing weapons, had been awarded six years imprisonment by the TADA (Terrorists and Disruptive Activities (Prevention) Act) court.