New Delhi was the scene of all action related to the 1993 Mumbai blasts case on Tuesday. While the spotlight remained primarily on actor Sanjay Dutt, convicted in an Arms Act case and sentenced to five years in jail, Markanday Katju, a former Supreme Court judge and at present the chairman of the Press Council of India, also cornered limelight as the typical Bollywoodesque ‘character actor’. Three others convicted alongside Dutt brought up the rear.

Here are the top four developments of the day:

1. Late in the afternoon, the Supreme Court gave a breather of sorts to Sanjay Dutt, ruling that it would take up for hearing his plea for more time to surrender on Wednesday. The apex court bench headed by Justice P Sathasivam said the actor's plea would be taken up at 10.30 am Wednesday and the judgment pronounced.

The actor had on Monday sought six months' time to surrender, pleading that that he should be granted time to complete his film projects since approximately Rs 300 crore has been invested in these film projects.

2. Earlier in the day, a Supreme Court bench headed by chief justice Altamas Kabir rejected a similar petition by three other convicts of the Mumbai blasts for extension of time to surrender. Zaibunnisa Anwar Kazi (70), Issaq Mohd Hajwane (76) and Shariff Abdul Gafoor Parker (88), alias Dadabhai, had moved the apex court seeking more time on the ground that their clemency pleas are pending before President Pranab Mukherjee.

Rejecting their petitions, the court said extension of time to surrender cannot be given on the ground that clemency plea is pending before the President.

The court had earlier asked the trio, as well as actor Dutt, to surrender by April 18.

3. Press Council chairperson and retired Justice Markandey Katju, who has written to President Mukherjee seeking pardon for Sanjay Dutt and Zaibunnisa Kazi, met prime minister Manmohan Singh. Refusing to divulge details of what they discussed, Katju told reporters: “All I can tell you is what is contained in my letters that I have appealed for pardon to five persons: Sanjay Dutt, Zaibunissa Kazi, Ishaq (Hajwane), Shariff Abdul Gafoor and Bhullar. I also prayed that until my pardon petition is disposed of respite should be granted because Article 72 not only empowers the President to grant pardon, it also empowers the President to grant respite or suspension of sentence.

“So, till the pardon petition is decided, I have prayed that the President should grant respite.”

4. Back in Mumbai, Dutt is reported to be working in double shifts to finish pending projects before surrendering himself. A report on NDTV website said the actor needs about seven or eight days to wrap up the shooting for the film ‘Peekay’, directed by Rajkumar Hirani, who had earlier made the Munnabhai series with Dutt, one of which had left Justice Katju impressed enough to contend that Dutt deserves mercy if only because he helped make the Mahatma popular among the youth.