A special TADA court hearing the 1993 serial blasts case will start pronouncing sentences against 100 people convicted in the matter on May 18 after deciding on an application filed by actor Sanjay Dutt seeking leniency under the Probation of Offenders Act.
Special Judge Pramod Kode on Wednesday said the applications filed by Dutt, Yusuf Nalwala, Kersi Adjania and Rusi Mulla under the Probation of Offenders Act will be decided on May 16.
However, court sources said the order will not be disclosed in open court on May 16 itself.
Of the 123 accused, 100 were convicted by the court. The CBI has sought the death penalty for 44 of the convicts who were involved in the conspiracy to carry out the serial blasts of March 12, 1993. The court formally acquitted 23 people.
Kode also said various applications, including those seeking retrial, discharge under TADA and parity with Dutt, will be decided along with the pronouncement of sentences as the subject matter of the applications was related to the award of punishment.
Earlier, the court heard yet another application, filed by convict Zakir Hussain Noor Mohammed, who urged that he be allowed to rely on Anand Patwardhan's acclaimed documentary "Father, Son and the Holy War" in his plea for a lenient sentence.
His lawyer Farhana Shah argued that the documentary depicts the atmosphere before and after the demolition of the Babri mosque in 1992 and could be useful while considering what provoked her client to become involved in the bombings.
However, Special Public Prosecutor Ujjwal Nikam opposed this plea, saying the application was made with the intention of delaying the trial.
