Official sent Sanjay Dutt's parole plea to Mumbai to re-verify claim

Divisional commissioner Prabhakar Deshmukh says that after the actor submitted the plea in September, he sent it to Mumbai police to ascertain the truth of Dutt's grounds for seeking parole ufffd wife Maanayata's heart ailment

Sometimes you're given star treatment, sometimes you aren't.u00a0Even as the Yerawada prison authorities are busy filling out thepaperwork for releasing Sanjay Dutt on parole in a few days, divisional commissioner Prabhakar Deshmukh has affirmed that he had sent back the actor's parole application to the Mumbai police for re-verification in September this year. He made the revelation giving weight to the claim that Dutt is treated like any other prisoner following media reports that some jail officials are star-struck at having Dutt in their midst.

In and out: Yerawada jail superintendent has said that Dutt would be out on parole soon. Earlier in October, Dutt was granted au00a014-day leave of furlough. It was later extended on medical grounds by another 14 days

Deshmukh, who is the sanctioning authority to grant parole or furlough to jail inmates in five districts including Pune, said that Dutt had submitted his plea for a month's parole in September.u00a0

MiD DAY's December 7 report on Dutt's wife Maanayata's party-hopping on the night before he was granted parole after citing that she was unwell

"Dutt had mentioned his wife was suffering from chest pain and that he wanted parole to be with her during her medical test," said Deshmukh. "But of late, we have observed that in many cases inmates submit bogus medical certificates. Hence, they need to be verified."

On a pa-role: This is the second short-term release for the actor from the prison, after the month-long furlough he took in October

So Deshmukh referred the application back to the Mumbai police so they could check the authenticity of the medical certificates. In Mumbai, the assistant commissioner of police (ACP) of Khar division strongly endorsed the actor's request, Deshmukh claimed. "The application came back to me on November 26 with a strong recommendation from ACP Shivaji Kolekar, requesting me to approve it," he said.

Deshmukh said, "This commissionerate receives 200-250 parole pleas in a year and Dutt's was treated like any other. This was precisely why it was sent for a recheck."

A controversy had erupted on December 6, when Deshmukh had approved Dutt's parole, even though his supposedly ailing wife Maanayata was spotted attending two Bollywood bashes. MiD DAY on December 7 had reported about her presence at the parties.

"My approval for any parole application is based on two things. First is the jail superintendent's report on the behaviour of the prisoner, and second is the personal verification by the police authority concerned of the reason cited for seeking parole. However, the recommendation from the ACP was very strong and, therefore, I sanctioned Dutt's parole," said Deshmukh.

The 53-year-old actor was lodged in the Yerawada jail in May after his conviction for illegal possession of arms in the 1993 Mumbai blasts case. He is serving the 42-month remainder of his five-year sentence.

Cops crosschecked claim, says acp
Assistant Commissioner of Police Shivaji Kolekar, however, claimed that he did not advocate parole for Dutt. It was granted only after Mumbai's Khar police had verified the truth of the medical certificate submitted by Dutt, which cited his wife Maanayata's heart ailment.u00a0"The Khar police station officials first went and verified from the doctor treating Dutt that the reason mentioned in the certificate was true. To doubly check, senior inspector Vikas Sonawane personally went to the doctor concerned to crosscheck this," Kolekar said, adding, "After establishing that the reason mentioned in the report was, indeed, true we sent out findings in the report to the divisional commissioner in Pune."

Dutt to get parole soon: official
Yerawada Jail Superintendent Yogesh Desai said that Sanjay Dutt's relatives had fulfilled the conditions for securing his release. "The actor's relatives have furnished the surety and the cash security of Rs 5,000, and he would be released soon," Desai said.u00a0