Prof Teltumbde allowed 5-min phone call with mother after brother's encounter

A special National Investigation Agency court in Mumbai has allowed activist Anand Teltumbde, an accused in the Elgar Parishad-Maoist links case, to have a telephonic conversation with his mother for five minutes in the wake of the death of his brother Milind Teltumbde, a top Naxal leader, in an encounter with security forces last week.

Anand Teltumbde is currently lodged in Taloja jail following his arrest in the Elgar Parishad case in April 2020.

The court on Tuesday allowed his plea in which he sought a telephonic conversation with his mother.

The detailed order was made available on Wednesday.

In his plea, Teltumbde said his 90-year-old mother is in a state of shock and bereavement after Milind's demise and therefore he may be permitted a telephone call.

His plea was allowed by special court's judge D E Kothalikar.

'The superintendent Taloja Central Prison shall allow accused No.10 (Teltumbde) to make phone calls to his mother for 5 minutes by keeping the phone on speaker mode,' the court said.

The superintendent shall get it confirmed that the person speaking from the other side is mother of the accused only, it added.

Anand Teltumbde and some other activists were initially booked by the Pune police after violence erupted at Koregaon Bhima near Pune, a day after the Elgar Parishad conclave was held in the city on December 31, 2017.

Inflammatory speeches and provocative statements made at the conclave triggered the violence at Koregaon Bhima the next day, the police had alleged.

According to the police, the event was 'backed' by Maoists.

The NIA later took over the probe into the case.

Milind Teltumbde died in Saturday's encounter with security forces that killed 26 rebels in Gadchiroli district of eastern Maharashtra.

He was carrying a reward of Rs 50 lakh on his head for his alleged involvement in violent activities against the state.