Apex court rejects NIA petition against bail given to Teltumbde
The Supreme Court on Friday dismissed the National Investigation Agency’s (NIA) plea against the grant of bail to Anand Teltumbde, an accused in the 2018 Bhima-koregaon case.
“We are not inclined to entertain this petition,” observed a bench headed by Chief Justice of India (CJI) Dhananjaya Y Chandrachud, rejecting the agency’s plea to set aside the Bombay high court’s order on November 18. The bench, however, clarified that the observations made by the high court will not have any bearing on the trial, and that they will be confined only to the purpose of granting bail.
When the high court granted the relief to Teltumbde on November 18, it stayed its order for a week so that NIA could approach the Supreme Court. Teltumbde, who is currently in jail, will be released following the apex court’s decision.
Teltumbde was arrested in April 2020 over alleged links with the banned Communist Party of India (Maoist), accordinvolved
ing to NIA.
The 73-year-old is facing charges under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) and is lodged in Taloja prison in Navi Mumbai.
Teltumbde is the third accused in the case to be granted bail by the high court, after co-accused Varavara Rao and Sudha Bharadwaj. While Rao was granted bail on medical grounds, and Bharadwaj was given default bail, Teltumbde is the first accused in the case to get bail on merits.
Appearing for NIA on Friday, additional solicitor general (ASG) Aishwarya Bhati said the agency had recovered several incriminating materials from Teltumbde and the co-accused.
These materials, Bhati added, suggested that Teltumbde was in Maoist activities and was an active member of a proscribed organisation involved in propagation of ideology and preparation of violent attacks on citizens.
Senior advocate Kapil Sibal, representing Teltumbde, argued that materials being relied upon by Bhati were not recovered from his client and that the agency does not have any document to show Teltumbde attended the event at Pune where certain inflaming speeches were allegedly made.
Reacting to the order, Teltumbde’s lawyer R Satyanarayana said, “After the Supreme Court order, we moved the high court to comply with all the formalities for his release... After all the compliance, the court has issued a release order on Friday.”
The case pertains to alleged inflammatory speeches made at an Elgar Parishad conclave in Pune on December 31, 2017 which, police claimed, triggered violence the next day near Bhima-koregaon war memorial on the outskirts of the city. One person was killed in the incident.