Elgar Parishad Case: NIA Opposes Dr Anand Teltumbde's Plea To Travel Abroad, Citing Risk Of Absconding

Mumbai: The National Investigation Agency (NIA) has opposed the plea by Dalit rights activist Dr. Anand Teltumbde, one of the accused in the 2018 Elgar Parishad case, seeking permission to travel abroad, stating that there is a likelihood of him absconding.

Moreover, some of the wanted accused by central law enforcement agencies, including those of the NIA, have “absconded and sought asylum in foreign countries,” posing legal trouble in bringing them back to face trial.

Teltumbde had approached the Bombay High Court seeking permission to travel to Amsterdam and the UK in April-May for seminars. He filed a plea seeking travel permission as one of his bail conditions imposes travel restrictions.

NIA counsel Sandesh Patil opposed the plea, stating that there was no need for Teltumbde to physically travel abroad to deliver the lectures, as the same could be “delivered through online mode.”

The affidavit added: “Some of the wanted charge-sheeted accused of the NIA and other central law enforcement agencies of India have absconded and sought asylum in foreign countries. Hence, there exists a legal hurdle in bringing back the accused for prosecution and trial in those cases.”

“It is strongly opposed by the NIA on the ground of the likelihood of the accused absconding and thereby allegedly taking shelter in the said countries to avoid the judicial process and trial of this case, as well as the applicant-accused furthering the criminal and unlawful activities of the CPI (Maoist) in India,” the NIA affidavit states.

The central agency has further alleged that Teltumbde used to attend international conferences under the guise of academic visits abroad and used to bring back Maoist literature and videos (in pen drives/memory cards) related to their ideology, tactics, weapons, periods of attacks, planning of sudden attacks despite routine Tactical Counter Offensive Campaigns (TCOC) during Naxal weeks, expansion of zones, and recruitment for the CPI (Maoist) organization.

The said foreign literature and videos were shown to CPI (Maoist) members in training and classes and were used for training and strategic development of party members. “Hence, it can be concluded that the visit of the applicant, Anand Teltumbde, to overseas countries is to collect incriminating Maoist literature and videos related to their ideology, tactics, and weapons used by them,” the NIA affidavit adds.

According to Teltumbde’s plea, he is a leading authority on Dr. Ambedkar, the Dalit movement, caste, public policy, and democratic rights in India. It states that the Faculty of Humanities, University of Amsterdam, has selected him as a visiting scholar for a four-week program involving seminars, delivering a lecture on Ambedkar on April 14, conducting master classes with PhD candidates, postgraduate teaching, and meetings with individual scholars and faculty.

He has claimed that he has been invited by the Leiden Institute for Asia Studies, Leiden University in the Netherlands; Nottingham Trent University in the United Kingdom; and three more universities in the UK, including the University of Oxford.