Chaos, crowds and cameras

A sombre Sanjay Dutt surrendering before the court to serve his three-and-a-half year sentence was welcomed by supporters, and a court thronged by court staff members, lawyers and the media

The usually quiet, gothic revival building of the City Civil and Session Court saw a huge flurry of activity as it was turned into a police fortress before actor Sanjay Dutt surrendered to complete his sentence of 42 months under the Arms Act in the 1993 bomb blasts case.u00a0

A large crowd of people, including his followers, had gathered outside the court to catch a glimpse of the actor.

Middle-aged women, the court’s staff members, canteen workers, and even other lawyers waited to view the star.u00a0

When Dutt finally appeared at the premises, a lot of slogans were shouted in his support and after much persuasion way was made for a white-kurta clad Dutt and his family to enter the premises.

Future tense: Moments before u00a0entering the court, Dutt took a minute inside his car with his family members. Pics/Sayed Sameer Abedi

But even as chaos ensued with fans thronging the premises, the courtroom of judge GA Sanap remained quiet and tense with all of Dutt’s family — wife Manyata, sister Priya Dutt, brother-in-law Owen Roncon and director Mahesh Bhatt — looking worried and weary and the hot and muggy weather only made matters worse.

The drama and the suspense was reminiscent of a Bollywood film, as Dutt waited while the proceedings continued.

Chaos
When he was about to leave the court after the long final wait, a small scuffle broke out among court staffers and police authorities. Finally the staffers was hounded out of the building by the authorities.

Media persons who jostled with the crowds fighting to get their money shot were also not permitted inside the premises while proceedings continued inside the court for Dutt.

People continued to maintain a vigil till late evening, when Dutt finally emerged. He was then shifted to Arthur Road jail.u00a0

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