Mumbai, Feb 04: A book discussion featuring activist and author Anand Teltumbde at the prestigious Kala Ghoda Arts Festival was cancelled following an alleged oral directive from the Mumbai Police, participants said on Wednesday.
Session on incarceration called off
The session, titled “Incarcerated: Tales from Behind Bars,” was scheduled to be held on Thursday (February 5) between 8 pm and 9 pm. The discussion was to explore how imprisonment becomes both a site of punishment and deep personal reflection.
Along with Teltumbde, the panel included journalist and author Neeta Kolhatkar, whose book The Feared: Conversations with Eleven Political Prisoners documents the lives of inmates behind bars, and was to be moderated by Scroll editor Naresh Fernandes.
Police directive cited by organisers
According to Mumbai Police sources, complete details of the Kala Ghoda Festival programme had been shared with the department. However, organisers were later informed verbally to cancel the event.
The organisers told participants that the police not only asked them to withdraw the book discussion session but also instructed them to remove all social media posts related to the event. Participants were similarly asked to delete promotional posts.
Emails from organisers
Speaking to FPJ, Teltumbde said he received an email from the organisers stating that the police had objected after seeing the event’s promotional material.
“The police saw the creative made for the change in timing and requested that we cancel the session,” the email received by Teltumbde reportedly stated.
Participants seek clarity
Kolhatkar also told FPJ that the exact reason for the cancellation had not been clarified. “We were simply going to have a peaceful discussion about the lives of the 11 people featured in my book and their experiences behind bars. We have now been told the programme has been cancelled by the police,” she said.
About the festival
The Kala Ghoda Arts Festival, one of Mumbai’s largest cultural events, began on January 31 and will conclude on February 8. Its collaborators include the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation, Maharashtra Tourism Department, and UNESCO. The Maharashtra Police and Mumbai Traffic Police are listed among the festival’s supporters. The festival features a wide range of events, including dance, theatre, music, stand-up comedy and heritage walks.
Background on Teltumbde
Teltumbde was arrested on April 14, 2020, by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) in connection with the Bhima Koregaon case under the stringent Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA).
He was among 16 activists, academics, lawyers and poets accused of conspiring to trigger caste violence near Pune in 2018. Human rights groups have alleged that the case reflects misuse of anti-terror laws to target dissenters.
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Teltumbde spent over 31 months in Taloja Central Jail before being granted bail by the Bombay High Court in November 2022, a decision later upheld by the Supreme Court. He remains out on bail while the trial continues.
He has described his incarceration as humiliating, citing poor prison conditions and lack of medical care during the Covid-19 pandemic. His prison experiences are chronicled in his memoir, “The Cell and the Soul: A Prison Memoir.”
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