Tarun Tejpal Surrenders in Sexual Assault Case Following Conviction

Panaji: Tehelka founder Tarun Tejpal surrendered before the Mapusa court in Goa in connection with the sexual assault case involving a former employee. The Bombay High Court had sentenced Tejpal to 10 years in prison and imposed a fine of Rs 5 lakh in the case. Tejpal had approached the Supreme Court challenging the High Court verdict, but the court directed him to surrender within two weeks. The incident that led to the case took place in 2013. In 2021, a Goa trial court had acquitted Tejpal. The Bombay High Court later overturned the acquittal and found him guilty. The case relates to allegations that Tejpal raped a female employee inside a lift at a resort in Goa during Tehelka magazine's ThinkFest event in November 2013. A division bench comprising Justices Dr Neela Gokhale and Amit Jamsandekar found Tejpal guilty after hearings that continued for several days. During the proceedings, Tejpal had sought leniency, stating that he was now 62 years old and had been deliberately implicated in the case.