Mumbai: A special National Investigation Agency (NIA) court on Monday rejected the bail application of Dr Anand Teltumbde, a management professor at the Goa Institute of Management accused in the Elgar Parishad-Bhima Koregaon case.
The professor, who is also a Dalit scholar and civil rights activist, had made this plea on merits of the case in January this year. In his 65-page bail application, the 70-year-old, who is also the husband of Dr. BR Ambedkar’s granddaughter Rama Ambedkar, had claimed that he was implicated in the case to humiliate the entire Dalit community.
He had stated that while the NIA mentions him as one of the convenors of the Elgar Parishad event, it has not shown any evidence of it. He denied being present at it.
The NIA, in its response filed to oppose the bail plea, had cited electronic evidence seized from a co-accused Rona Wilson. By this time, the Arsenal Consulting report released from a US-based digital forensics firm had found in its analysis that incriminating evidence found on Wilson’s computer was ‘planted’ through a cyber attack. At least 10 incriminating letters were planted in his computer, the report had said, in the 22 months while his computer was compromised. The agency alleged in its reply that the professor under the guise of academic visits would procure literature on Maoist ideology during his international conferences, which were then used for training purposes of members of the banned CPI(Maoist).
Countering his claim in his bail plea that he was not present at the Elgar Parishad conclave, provocative speeches which had allegedly led to violence the following day, the NIA had said that his mobile phone location showed he visited the venue between 10 am and 12.30 pm.
Last year, his bail plea that was filed on the grounds that the chargesheet was not filed within the stipulated time, had been rejected by the court.
The NIA has claimed in its chargesheet filed against Teltumbde in October last year that he was inspired by his brother Milind Teltumbde, who the agency calls a top operative of the CPI(Maoist) and has shown as an absconding accused in the case. It claimed witnesses had stated that he visited various cities where he would meet his brother Milind and take guidance to advance the movement in urban as well as rural areas.
