Tehelka Founder Tarun Tejpal Gets 10-Year Jail Term After Goa HC Conviction in Rape Case

Panaji: The Bombay High Court's Goa Bench has sentenced Tehelka founder Tarun Tejpal to 10 years of rigorous imprisonment and imposed a fine of ₹5 lakh after convicting him in the 2013 rape case involving a former colleague.

The court also directed that the fine amount be paid to the survivor as compensation. Earlier in the day, the High Court had held Tejpal guilty, overturning the 2021 judgment of the Goa trial court that had acquitted him.

The High Court ordered Tejpal to surrender before the authorities within two weeks.

The case relates to an incident in November 2013, when Tejpal was accused of raping a woman employee in the elevator of a resort in Goa during Tehelka magazine's ThinkFest event.

The judgment was delivered by a Division Bench comprising Justices Dr. Neela Gokhale and Amit Jamdar after hearing extensive arguments over several days.

During the sentencing proceedings, Tejpal sought leniency, telling the court that he is now 62 years old and claiming that he had been falsely implicated in the case.

Following the verdict, Tejpal approached the Supreme Court seeking an interim stay on the High Court's order for one week to enable him to pursue further legal remedies.