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Tejpal challenges High Court rape conviction
NDTV··20 Aug
On 20 August 2026, former Tehelka editor Tarun Tejpal appealed in the Supreme Court against a Bombay High Court judgment that convicted him in a 2013 rape case and imposed 10 years' rigorous imprisonment. The Goa Bench of Justices Neela Gokhale and Amit Jamsandekar had on 6 August set aside a 2021 sessions-court acquittal. Advocate Aditya Samaddar filed the appeal.
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What It Means For You
- If you are following the case, two petitions now sit in the Supreme Court: Tejpal's challenge to conviction and Goa's plea to raise the 10-year term.
- The High Court gave time to surrender and later extended it to four weeks on the defence request, so the surrender clock is part of the public record.
- The fine of Rs 10.21 lakh was directed to be paid to the survivor, which is separate from the jail term now under appeal.
What's Happening
- The Mapusa sessions court acquitted Tejpal in May 2021. Goa appealed, and the High Court reversed that acquittal on 6 August 2026.
- The High Court convicted him under IPC Sections 376(2)(f), 354A and 354B and called the trial judgment perverse for expecting a perfect victim.
- Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, appearing for Goa at sentencing, had asked for the maximum punishment.
What The Two Supreme Court Pleas Ask For
- Goa's petition is confined to quantum of sentence and does not ask the Supreme Court to reopen the High Court's conclusions on the merits.
- Tejpal, 62, pleaded for leniency in the High Court as the father of two daughters and said he would appeal.
- The alleged incidents were recorded as 7 and 8 November 2013 at a five-star hotel during the magazine's Goa event.
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