Jail term 'real' for the reel hero

Mumbai, July 31 (UNI) Cine star Sanjay Dutt's protrayal of several roles including that of an undertrial and a convict on reel, today turned 'real' with the TADA court awarding him six years' rigorous imprisonment (RI) under the Arms Act.

TADA court Judge P D Kode also imposed a fine of Rs 25,000 on him.

Sources say Sanju Baba, as he is popularly known, has been lodged in a 90 sq ft cell in barack number one of the Arthur Road Jail in Central Mumbai. Dutt's cell is next to the cell of another high-profile undertrial Praveen Mahajan, who is facing charges of murdering his brother and former union minister Pramod Mahajan.

The jail enjoys the dubious distinction of having second highest number of undertrials lodged after New Delhi's Tihar Central Prison.

Once inside the jail, sources say, Dutt was treated like any other convict. As soon he arrived, he was taken to the tailor's shop where he gave his measurment for the jail clothes.

As per the jail manual, a convict is given a knee-high short, a white coloured shirt with two black stripes on either side, and a Nehru cap to wear during the confinement period.

Sanjay Dutt was also given a steel thali, two steel bowls and a steelglass, which he would be using for his meals, the source said.

The source added that Dutt would be assigned any work ranging from a carpenter's job to the tailoring one by the Jail Superintendent.

UNI