Sanctimoniously yours...

This is what I have just read on the net...

"Sanjay Dutt appeals to Bollywood to withdraw signature campaign"

According to the article, Mr Dutt has appealed to the hindi film industry to not hold any prayer meetings or signature campaigns of any kind because it is the word of the law that matters in this case.

First of all what business has the Hindi film industry got to do with the conviction. You will find the answer a little further in the article...

"We are grateful to Sanjay for his kind deeds and the help he extended to workers in the film industry and hence we are launching a signature campaign to express our feelings that the entire Bollywood is with him in this moment of crisis," Nihalani, film producer and President of Association of Motion Pictures and TV Programme Producers, had said.

So it is the producers who have their vested pecuniary interests in launching a signature campaign to express their feelings. Mr Nihlani, you and your motley crew of producers would be better of spending your money on good cinema, rather than on futile gimmicks like these.

However benevolent Mr Dutt may be, the fact of the matter is that, he has committed a crime which is punishable under the Indian constitution. The fact that he is a movie star with a popular following and has substantial amount of money riding on him, does not make him an exception. Mr Nihlani and other from the film industry should bear that in mind before organising such campaigns.