SC to hear Dutt’s plea on March 30

The Supreme court will hear on March 30 the petition filed by actor Sanjay Dutt seeking suspension of his conviction in connection with the 1993 Mumbai serial blasts case to contest upcoming Lok Sabha polls.

The Supreme court will hear on March 30 the petition filed by actor Sanjay Dutt seeking suspension of his conviction in connection with the 1993 Mumbai serial blasts case to contest upcoming Lok Sabha polls.

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A bench headed by Chief Justice K G Balakrishnan issued notice to the CBI and sought its reply on the plea of Dutt.

Dutt is the Samajwadi Party candidate from Lucknow parliamentary seat.

The actor had yesterday moved the court seeking suspension of his conviction.

Dutt was held guilty under the Arms Act by a Mumbai TADA Court which has sentenced him to six years of imprisonment.

In his petition, he has sought suspension of the conviction on the grounds which were considered by the apex court while staying the conviction of BJP leader Navjot Singh Sidhu in a road rage death case.

Dutt, who recently visited America as United Nations’ Goodwill Ambassador on malnutrition, said his conduct during the trial should be considered for granting him relief like cricketer-turned-politician Sidhu.

The apex court had on January 23, 2007 stayed the conviction and three-year sentence of Sidhu in a road rage death case paving the way for his contesting Amritsar Lok Sabha bypoll after he had resigned in the wake of Punjab and Haryana High Court holding him guilty for the offence.

Dutt, 50, has asked the apex court to consider that he was absolved of the serious offence under TADA and there was not a single case registered against him before the Mumbai blasts.

The actor has filed an appeal against his conviction in the apex court which had granted him bail on November 27, 2007. The Bollywood star, who was sentenced in July 2007, had spent 18 months in jail during the pendency of the trial.