A special National Investigation Agency (NIA) court on Friday extended the judicial custody of academician Dr. Anand Teltumbde, arrested on April 14 in the Elgar Parishad case, till May 22.
Dr Teltumbde, who was remanded in judicial custody on April 25, is lodged at Taloja jail. He is in quarantine till Saturday, since an assistant sub-inspector with the NIA’s Mumbai office, where he was kept during his custodial interrogation, tested positive for COVID-19.
His lawyers urged the court to direct authorities to ensure he gets medical aid as he suffers from various ailments. The court has told prison authorities to submit a report on treatment provided to him by May 15. It also asked them to file a detailed reply by May 22.
An engineer and Indian Institute of Management graduate, Dr. Teltumbde taught at the Indian Institute of Technology, Kharagpur. He was the managing director and CEO of Petronet India Limited.
According to the NIA, Dr. Teltumbde has links to the banned Communist Party of India (Maoist) and is suspected to have received funds from the organisation. It claims he was the convener of the Elgar Parishad organised on December 31, 2017, at Shaniwarwada in Pune, where provocative speeches were allegedly made by activists of the Kabir Kala Manch. It also claims that call detail records reveal his presence at the event.
