Mumbai: Scholar-activist Anand Teltumbde, an accused in the Elgar Parishad-Maoist links case, is likely to walk out of prison on Saturday after the Supreme Court rejected the National Investigation Agency’s (NIA) plea challenging the bail granted to him.
Following the Apex court’s order on Friday, Teltumbde’s lawyers completed bail formalities before the special NIA court judge Rajesh Katariya here.
The court then issued his release order, one of his lawyers said.
Teltumbde is lodged in the Taloja jail in neighbouring Navi Mumbai since his arrest in April 2020.
The Bombay High Court on November 18 granted bail to him, noting that prima facie there was no evidence to show his involvement in any terror activity.
The high court, however, stayed its bail order for a week so that the NIA, the probe agency, could approach the Supreme Court.
On Friday, A bench of Chief Justice D Y Chandrachud and Justice Hima Kohli rejected the NIA plea against the bail.
Following the SC order, Teltumbde’s lawyers submitted a cash bond of Rs 1,00,000 in the NIA court.
Teltumbde, 73, is the third of the 16 accused arrested in the case to be released on bail.
Poet Varavara Rao is currently out on bail on health grounds while lawyer Sudha Bharadwaj is out on regular bail.
The case relates to alleged inflammatory speeches made at the Elgar Parishad conclave held in Pune on December 31, 2017, which the police claimed triggered violence the next day near the Koregaon-Bhima war memorial on the outskirts of the western Maharashtra city.
Pune Police had also claimed that the conclave was organised by some persons with alleged Maoist links.
A First Information Report was lodged by Pune Police on January 8, 2018, under the Indian Penal Code and Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act.
The NIA later took over the case.
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