Court seeks probation report

Mumbai, May 16 (UNI) Judge P D Kode, who is conducting trials into the 1993 serial blasts case, today commenced the process of calling reports from probation officers for the convicts who are seeking benefit under Probation of Offenders Act (POA).

The convicts include Bollywood actor Sanjay Dutt.

The TADA court also announced that it would start delivering the final verdict from Friday. ''I have said that sentencing will start from May 18 and I will start on that day,'' Judge Kode said addressing the prosecution and defence lawyers in the high-security court.

Dutt and his three friends -- Yusuf Nulwala, Rusi Mulla and Kersi Adajenia -- have filed applications seeking relief under section 4 of PoA. After this development, several others who had been held guilty have also submitted a letter, signed jointly, to the Judge and urged that they should be given parity with Dutt and offered benefits of POA.

During the hearing today, the Judge directed the prosecution to submit information with necessary details about such probation officers by tomorrow. The court registrar was directed to prepare a draft letter call report from the probation officer, but without mentioning the name and other details of the accused.

Meanwhile, all the 100 accused found guilty, including nine (this includes Dutt) who have been granted time to surrender till further orders, have been asked to be present in the court on Friday. The sentencing would go on for a few weeks, TADA court sources said.

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