‘Ladka bewakoof hai’: Sunil Dutt begged police to save Sanjay Dutt in 1993 Mumbai blasts case

‘Sanjay Dutt spoke to Dawood Ibrahim, got those weapons delivered to his house’

Singh said, “The underworld was involved in getting arms from Pakistan. Sanjay Dutt had spoken to Dawood Ibrahim, met him, and then got those weapons delivered to his house. Abu Salem had come to make the delivery on the instructions of Dawood Ibrahim’s younger brother. So, when we learnt that Sanjay Dutt had accepted the weapons, we were all shocked.”

Sanjay’s father Sunil Dutt was an active politician at the time and had a stellar reputation. Singh said that Sanjay’s involvement shocked them because they couldn’t believe that Sunil’s son would be involved in something nefarious. “We couldn’t believe it—not because we thought Sanjay Dutt couldn’t do something like this, but because of Sunil Dutt. He was a great, decent gentleman. However, when I had so much information about Sanjay Dutt receiving weapons during a period of riots, how could I not act upon it? Should I have simply let it go because he is a star? That wasn’t possible.”

Sanjay Dutt confessed, said he took arms for protection

He further added: “Then we summoned him and questioned him. He confessed to his actions. He said, ‘I have taken them, but it was a mistake.’ When asked what prompted him to associate with gangsters, he said, ‘Around the time of the riots, I was receiving threats, so I got them delivered to my home. It was my mistake.’ I then told him, ‘You already have multiple licensed weapons—wasn’t that enough? There was also police security outside your house. Despite all this, you took AK-56 rifles, bullets, and grenades. These are not things one keeps for personal safety.’ After this, he admitted his involvement, and we arrested him.”

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Sunil Dutt said, ‘Ladka bevakoof hai’

Singh also spoke about the pressure he faced during the investigation: “During this time, I was under pressure from several quarters, including Sunil Dutt, who would often meet me and request me to save his son, saying, ‘Ladka bevakoof hai’ (the boy is foolish). I told him it was extremely difficult for me, especially since Sanjay was a public figure and the entire world knew about the case. I could not dismiss the charges. He requested that I not invoke the TADA (Terrorist and Disruptive Activities (Prevention) Act), saying his son was not a terrorist. I agreed that he was not a conventional terrorist, but he had helped terrorists, which is also a serious crime. I also told him that Sanjay Dutt was not the only one against whom action had been taken—many others, including some police officers who helped gangsters, were also charged.”

He added: “As an officer, I had to fulfill my duty. In such a case, I cannot help anyone. Many people were unhappy with my actions, but the case against him was strong, and that is why convictions followed. I filed the case under the TADA Act and submitted the charge sheet.”

‘No personal enmity with Sanjay or Sunil Dutt’

However, Singh raised one concern for public consideration: “Everyone involved—including Abu Salem, Baba Moosa Chauhan, and Haneef Kadawala, who were accused of delivering the weapons—were punished under the TADA Act. My grievance with the court is that those who delivered the weapons were convicted under TADA, but the person who received them was not treated under the same provisions. I have no personal enmity with Sanjay or Sunil Dutt, but one must analyse how this makes sense. I cannot say whether the court was pressured, but the outcome raises questions.”

About Sanjay Dutt’s arrest

In his autobiography Let Me Say It Now, former Deputy Commissioner of Police Rakesh Maria also described Sanjay Dutt’s interrogation, noting that the actor initially denied involvement before eventually confessing.

Maria wrote that during questioning, he told Dutt: “I am asking you like a gentleman; you should answer like one.” He further recounted that several prominent figures, including Sunil Dutt, Rajendra Kumar, Mahesh Bhatt, Yash Johar, and Baldev Khosla, visited after Sanjay’s arrest. As Sunil defended his son’s innocence, Sanjay was brought in and eventually admitted to his involvement in front of him, leaving his father devastated. Maria noted that Sunil was “stunned,” adding that “the blood had drained from his face,” and that the confession left him emotionally shattered, unable to comprehend the “magnitude and gravity” of his son’s actions.

The 1993 Bombay blasts killed 257 people and injured over 1,400. Sanjay Dutt served three-and-a-half years in prison for illegal arms possession against a five-year sentence and was released from Yerwada Central Jail in 2016 after receiving remission for good behaviour.