sentenced Bollywood top actor and host of India's
version of the Big Brother reality-television
franchise, Sanjay Dutt, to five years in jail for the
illegal possession of firearms in a case connected
to a series of bomb blasts that ripped through
Mumbai and were one of the deadliest terror
attacks in the country.
Mr. Dutt was sentenced to six years in prison in
2007 for illegal possession of weapons that were
supplied to him by men subsequently convicted in
the bombing.
That court cleared Mr. Dutt of involvement with the bombing plot. He has denied involvement with the attacks and said he asked for the guns to protect his family.
He appealed the decision at the Supreme Court and
was let out on bail in 2007. He has remained at
liberty since then until today. The court reduced his
sentence to five years but said the circumstances
and nature of offense was so serious that Mr. Dutt
cannot be released on probation. Mr. Dutt, 53 years
old, already has spent a cumulative 18 months in
jail on related charges
.
Mr. Dutt will have to surrender within four weeks to
serve the sentence, the court said.
