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Plea challenges Sanjay Dutt's parole application

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The Bombay high court will hear next week a petition by activist Pradeep Bhalekar, challenging the parole application filed by Bollywood actor Sanjay Dutt. The petition has alleged that the jail authorities and state government are giving the actor preferential treatment.

Dutt is currently serving a five-year sentence for his involvement in the 1993 serial blasts case. Since his surrender on May 16, 2013, he has been out of jail for 118 days on parole or furlough.

According to Bhalekar's petition, furlough applications of 313 convicts and parole applications of 438 convicts are pending with the jail authorities. As per information received by Bhalekar under the Right to Information Act, 55 convicts have died while waiting for their applications of parole or furlough to be decided by authorities concerned.

"Dutt has got parole for his wife being ill. There are other convicts who themselves are seriously ill or their dear ones have died, but still they have not been allowed parole or furlough," said Bhalekar.

There should be no discrimination between convicts, he said, adding that even the other convicts have Right to Life as guaranteed by the Constitution of India.

In October, 2013, Dutt was granted furlough of 28 days and then in December 2013, he was granted parole. In January, his parole was extended for another month and he was to surrender on February 21.

However, Dutt applied for another month's extension citing his wife's ill health. Dutt's application was allowed on February 18 by the Pune divisional commissioner and he surrendered on March 21.

Dutt's application for parole and then extension were considered within a week, whereas applications by other convicts were kept pending for months together, Bhalekar said.

As against this, the authorities had rejected applications of other 1993 bomb blasts convicts, Zaibunissa Kazi, who is suffering from kidney failure, and Farooq Motorwala, whose wife is suffering from a serious illness. They had to later approach HC.

Early this year, a public interest litigation was filed by an advocate, challenging the repeated parole extensions being granted to the actor and alleging abuse of power by the Pune jail superintendent and divisional commissioner of Pune.

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