NEW DELHI, 7 August 2007 — Hundreds of Sanjay Dutt fans are registering their support for the Bollywood star on the Internet by launching an online petition.
“Support Sanjay Dutt,” as the campaign is called, already has over 1,000 people who have signed up to seek a more lenient sentence for the actor sentenced to six years in jail. Fans from across the globe are voicing similar sentiments — that Dutt has already suffered a lot and deserves probation.
Says Merlin, one of the petitioners: “Jail is only for hardened criminals. Instead, give him social and community work like other countries do for public figures, such as fund-raising for worthy causes.”
Raj Bhatia, a fan from the United States said: “Sanjay has suffered enough for 14 years. You can penalize him monetarily but please put him on probation. India has always been a beacon of morals, traditions and legends.”
In all the pleas and requests that are going up on the website with increased frequency, it seemed evident that Dutt’s role in the film “Lage Raho Munnabhai,” where he preaches Gandhigiri or following Gandhi’s principles, has had a huge impact on his fans.
Apart from this online petition on www.boletoh.com, fans have also started using SMS to voice their support for the actor.
But public prosecutor Ujjwal Nikam is not too happy with this move. “If someone starts such a campaign criticizing the order of the court (before the prisoner seeks relief), it certainly amounts to contempt of court. I am watching the events carefully and if this continues, I will be forced to take legal action,” Nikam said.
