Below is a new article on the long-awaited incarceration of Bollywood "super-hero" Sanjay Dutt. Dutt has been convicted and jailed of violating the Indian arms acts, and his terrorism convictions from more than a decade ago deserved a fair trial, which he received.
Troubling development is, most mainstream Indian media are now overtly sympathizing with the once-macho (and sometimes buffoon) and lately-self-styled Gandhian film character "Munna Bhai," and totally downplaying his terrorism-linked conviction. Sanjay Dutt, the son of late film stars Nargis and Sunil Dutt, was found by the Indian judicial system to have had connections with long-sought international terror-suspect Dawood Ibrahim, who many believe has been behind violent terrorist acts in India and other parts of the world. The 1993, post-Babri mosque genocide in Mumbai, allegedly, was one such act. Thousands of poor people (mostly Muslims) were butchered in that carnage.
It's outrageous that the Indian media are now busy diluting "Munnabhai" Dutt's crimes. They've interviewed Bollywood stars like Amitabh Bacchan, Dilip Kumar, Sunil Setty, et al. who are all sympathizing with Dutt, and lamenting the fact that now his six-year jail term (if he serves it) would cause enormous financial loss to the Bollywood film industry. And of course, Dutt's family has been put under a very soft spotlight of sympathy. As if, the crimes and killings didn't matter.
Fact is, Bollywood has been synonymous with the underworld criminal mafia, smuggling, arms- and drug-dealing for decades. Informed Indians complain that the trillon-dollar industry, perhaps the largest in the world, and the city of Mumbai for a large part, are run by the underworld, and some big-name film stars, producers and directors are deeply involved with the terror mafia.
If the Indian media corporations were truly objective and serving the public interests (vis a vis corporate interests), they'd take a strong, supportive stand in favor of the ruling on Sanjay Dutt, and not undermine the Indian court system, which is still somewhat neutral. It's very cumbersome, hugely expensive and snail-paced, and thus often out-of-reach of average Indians, but largely impartial.
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The article below is a little different in nature, but even here, the sympathy comes through. Most other news stories have been blatantly pro-Sanjay Dutt.
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Paid labour awaits Sanjay Dutt in jail
Wed Aug 1, 2007 4:52PM IST
By Krittivas Mukherjee
MUMBAI (Reuters) - Actor Sanjay Dutt, who has swapped the glamour of the silver screen for the harsh reality of prison, will soon have to choose between cooking, carpentry, farming or weaving for just a dollar a day.
Dutt was jailed for six years "rigorous imprisonment" on Tuesday for acquiring guns from gangsters linked to India's worst bombings in Mumbai in 1993 -- less 16 months he served while awaiting trial.
"Rigorous imprisonment means doing labour like cooking, carpentry, farming, working on handlooms, etcetera," a jail official said, on condition of anonymity because he was not authorised to speak to the media.
"Sanjay Dutt will be treated like any other convict and he will have to work as well."
Dutt has been temporarily lodged in a jail in his hometown Mumbai meant for prisoners under trial, where he is reportedly sharing a cell with two other men, but officials said he would probably be moved to a more permanent home soon.
Indian jails are overcrowded, with some holding almost five times their capacity. The one Dutt is lodged in now officially has room for 800 people, but houses about 3,000.
Jail sources said Dutt would be given the prison uniform - a striped white shirt with white pyjamas and a white cap once it is decided where he will serve his term.
The actor, one of the highest paid in Bollywood, will have to eat the prison meals that prisoners themselves cook. Breakfast would typically be puffed rice, or vegetable curry with a loaf of bread, while lunch and dinner is curry, lentils and Indian bread.
There is chicken or eggs on weekends.
A jail cell, which usually houses three convicts, has a bulb but no fans. The lights are switched off after 8 p.m. Each convict is given two sheets. The living conditions are far from decent with stinking common toilets and bathrooms.
In India, where political clout and money often bend the rules, many celebrities and politicians have received special treatment while under trial, some being lodged in guest houses with air-conditioners and allowed to eat home-cooked food.
In some of the lawless states in eastern and northern India, convicts with the right connections receive special treatment and access to a television, refrigerators and mobile phones.
The judge who sentenced Dutt told prison officials to take all necessary steps to ensure the star's security, but jail officials stress Dutt will not get star treatment.
Dutt also requested the court that he be put in the same barracks as a friend who helped him destroy the automatic rifle which was to land them in trouble.
On Tuesday, his relatives met him and handed him some toiletries, medicines and clothes.
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Wednesday, August 1, 2007
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