Now Reading: Bombay High Court Convicts Tarun Tejpal, Orders 10-Year Jail Term
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Bombay High Court Convicts Tarun Tejpal, Orders 10-Year Jail Term
The Goa bench of the Bombay High Court on Thursday overturned Tarun Tejpal’s 2021 acquittal and sentenced the former Tehelka editor to 10 years’ rigorous imprisonment for sexually assaulting a junior colleague…
The Story in Brief
The Goa bench of the Bombay High Court on Thursday overturned Tarun Tejpal’s 2021 acquittal and sentenced the former Tehelka editor to 10 years’ rigorous imprisonment for sexually assaulting a junior colleague in a hotel elevator during a 2013 Goa event. The court also imposed a fine of Rs 10.21 lakh, payable to the survivor. The sentences under three IPC sections will run concurrently. Tejpal, 62, must surrender within four weeks and plans to challenge the conviction in the Supreme Court, Greater Kashmir reports.
The court called the trial judgment perverse and said it relied on stereotypes about how a survivor should behave. It criticised the defence’s focus on her private life and held that her testimony was reliable and consistent. IndiaTV News reports that Tejpal called himself a political victim and described the sentence as politically motivated.
The Indian Opinion
Two lazy narratives should be rejected. One says a survivor’s composure, continued work or compensation request disproves assault. The High Court found those assumptions legally irrelevant. The other treats Tejpal’s past as an investigative editor as evidence of political persecution. That is also not proof. The key test now is whether the Supreme Court upholds the conviction and the Rs 10.21 lakh award.
Sources (5): news.abplive.com, indiatvnews.com, indiatoday.in, timesnownews.com, greaterkashmir.com
This story was synthesised by AI from the 5 sources linked above.
Updated: this story now draws on 5 sources.
