Pune court frees Anand Teltumbde

Mumbai: Terming the arrest of the Dalit scholar cum activist Dr Anand Teltumbde from Mumbai ‘illegal’, a sessions court in Pune on Saturday released him. The arrest was termed illegal because the Supreme Court had already granted him relief from his arrest till February 11. A sessions court in Pune on Friday had rejected his pre-arrest bail plea. He was held in connection with the Elgar Parishad case and alleged links with Maoists.

Although Mr Teltumbde was forlorn with the  police’s behaviour, he said, “I welcome the decision. But what police has done is objectionable.”

The Pune police with the help of Mumbai police arrested the activist at Mumbai’s domestic airport in the early hours of Saturday after his arrival from Kerala, according to police officials.

The Mumbai police had handed Mr Teltumbde over to the Pune police. He was interrogated by the Mumbai police officials and later arrested by the team of Pune. However, the court ordered his release later.

Additional sessions Judge Kishor Vadane said the apex court, while rejecting Mr Teltumbde’s plea seeking to quash the FIR against him earlier, had given him protection from arrest till February 11 so that he could approach the “competent authority” for appropriate legal relief.

The competent authority includes high court as well as the SC, it said.

Therefore, arresting him before the protection period ended was “illegal” and also amounted to contempt of the SC’s order and he should be released immediately, the court said.

The Mumbai police senior officer said, “We had received an official communique from Pune police personnel regarding the arrival of Mr Teltumbde at the airport, as it was a Pune based case we couldn’t intervene, but since his arrival was in our city, we assisted Pune police in his arrest. He was later released since the apex court had already granted him bail.”   

Senior advocate Indira Jaising took to Twitter to protest against the activist’s arrest.  “Dr Anand Teltumbde arrested at 330am from Mumbai airport by Pune police in Gross violation of SC order giving him protection from arrest till February 11, this is contempt of the order of the Supreme Court of India #ReleaseDrAnandTeltumbde immediately,” (sic) she tweeted.

According to the Pune police, Maoists had supported the Elgar Parishad conclave held in Mumbai on December 31, 2017, and the inflammatory speeches there led to violent clashes at the Bhima-Koregaon war memorial the next day.