Our Bureau
Mumbai
The 1993 blasts in Mumbai that had taken 267 innocent lives were one of the most horrific incidents in Indian history. Bollywood star Sanjay Dutt was in the midst of the whole situation and was convicted for illegal possession of arms. Ujjwal Nikam, a key government lawyer and now a nominee in Rajya Sabha, stated that the blasts could have been avoided if Dutt had reached out to police about the weapons-laden vehicle.
Ujjwal Nikam, nominated by the President of India Droupadi Murmu, was in an interview recently looking back at his illustrious career. Recalling the 1993 blasts, Nikam spoke on how those could’ve been easily averted if only Dutt would’ve informed police about the van brought by Abu Salem to his house as it was days before the blast even happened.
“I have only one thing to say. The blast took place on March 12, days before a van came to his (Sanjay Dutt’s) house. It was full of weapons– hand grenades, AK 47s. Abu Salem (henchman of gangster Dawood Ibrahim) had brought it. Sanjay picked some hand grenades and guns. Then he returned it all and kept just one AK 47. Had he informed the police at the time, the police would have investigated and the Mumbai blasts would never have happened,” Mr Nikam said.
The court acquitted the bollywood superstar from the accusation of being a terrorist under the Terrorist and Disruptive Activities (Prevention) Act (TADA) law. However, they convicted Dutt under the Arms Act and sent him to jail for six years. The Supreme Court aided Dutt and reduced his sentence to five years which he completed in Pune’s Yerwada Jail.
Nikam however stated that if you ask him, he doesn’t think that Dutt committed a crime. He kept the weapons because he was attracted to guns and that’s an offence according to law, but Nikam considered him innocent. He stated, “He did commit an offence in the eyes of the law. But he is a straight forward guy… I considered him innocent.”
