Probe Agency NIA Moves Supreme Court Over Activist Anand Teltumbde's Bail

The National Investigation Agency (NIA) today approached the Supreme Court against the Bombay High Court order granting bail to Dalit rights activist and scholar Anand Teltumbde, booked under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act in the Bhima Koregaon case.

A bench of Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud and Justices Hima Kohli and JB Pardiwala said it will hear the case on November 25.

Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, appearing for NIA, mentioned the matter for a listing of the case on Thursday.

"The petition is by NIA. There is a bail order. The order is stayed for a week, that is on Friday," SG told the bench while mentioning.

The bench then said it will hear it on Friday.

CJI Chandrachud asked the Solicitor General to serve a copy of the petition to advocate Aparna Bhat, who is appearing for Teltumbde on caveat.

On November 18, the High Court granted bail to 73-year-old Teltumbde, however, stayed its order for a week so that the NIA, the prosecuting agency, can approach the Supreme Court.

The prosecution's case is that provocative and inflammatory speeches were made at the event that was allegedly backed by the banned terror outfit Communist Party of India (Maoist), which later led to violence at Koregaon Bhima village near Pune in 2018.

Teltumbde had surrendered before the NIA office in Mumbai on April 14, 2020, after the Supreme Court denied him any relief. He is now lodged at the Taloja Central jail.

Teltumbde, an Indian Institute of Management (IIM) graduate who taught at the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), was booked in the case for his alleged links to the banned CPI (Maoists).

He has been charged with several sections of the Indian Penal Code and the UAPA.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)