The Bombay High Court has given the Maharashtra government two weeks to justify its decision to grant Bollywood actor Sanjay Dutt early release from prison, after he was convicted in connection with the 1993 Mumbai bomb blasts case.

In 2013, Dutt was sentenced to five years in prison for possession of arms, which were part of a consignment used in the blasts that hit Mumbai on March 12, 1993, killing 257 people and injuring over 700 others.

The actor had surrendered in May 2013 after the Indian Supreme Court upheld his conviction.

However, Dutt was released in February 2016, eight months early, on account of his ?good conduct?.

According to reports in the Indian media, the Bombay High Court has now asked the state government to file an affidavit detailing the ?parameters considered, and the procedures followed? in reaching the conclusion that Dutt deserved leniency.

The order was given on a public interest litigation filed by a Pune resident, challenging regular paroles and furloughs granted to Dutt when he was serving his sentence.

Dutt spent 18 months in jail during the investigation and the marathon trial.