Bollywood star Dutt granted bail

Dutt, who was sentenced to six years in jail by a court in July, has been in prison since 23 October.

The actor was cleared of conspiracy, but found guilty of illegally possessing a rifle and a pistol.

Dutt is the most high-profile of 100 people convicted in connection with the blasts which killed 257 people.

Dutt, 48, is one of Bollywood's most bankable stars, and found fame playing gangsters and anti-heroes.

His trial generated huge interest among Bollywood fans across India.

The son of a Hindu father and Muslim mother, Dutt said the weapons were necessary in order to defend his family during the Hindu-Muslim rioting of 1993 that followed the destruction by Hindu zealots of the Babri mosque in Ayodhya.

The Mumbai blasts were allegedly carried out by Mumbai's (Bombay's) Muslim-dominated underworld in retaliation for the riots, in which most of those killed were Muslims.