The National Investigation Agency (NIA) filed an appeal with the Supreme Court on Tuesday, challenging the Bombay High Court’s decision to grant bail to Dalit rights activist and scholar Anand Teltumbde, who was charged under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act in the Bhima Koregaon case.
The case will be heard on November 25 by a bench consisting of Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud, Justices Hima Kohli and JB Pardiwala. On Thursday, Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, representing the NIA, mentioned the matter for a case listing.
“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 panel then stated that it will hear the case on Friday.
CJI Chandrachud requested that the Solicitor General send a copy of the petition on lawyer Aparna Bhat, who is appearing on caveat for Teltumbde.
On November 18, the High Court granted bail to Teltumbde, 73, but stayed its order for a week so that the prosecuting agency, the NIA, could appeal to the Supreme Court.
The prosecution claims that provocative and inflammatory speeches were made at the event, which was allegedly supported by the banned terror organisation Communist Party of India (Maoist), and that this led to violence in Koregaon Bhima village near Pune in 2018.
On April 14, 2020, Teltumbde surrendered to the NIA headquarters in Mumbai after the Supreme Court refused him any respite. He is presently being held in Taloja Central Jail.
Teltumbde, a graduate of the Indian Institute of Management (IIM) who taught at the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), was arrested in the case for suspected ties to the banned CPI (Maoists).
Several articles of the Indian Penal Code and the UAPA have been brought against him.
