Team Goemkarponn
PANAJI: The Supreme Court on Monday reserved its order on a plea filed by former Tehelka editor-in-chief Tarun Tejpal seeking exemption from surrendering as directed by the Bombay High Court.
Tejpal has challenged the August 6, 2026 order of the Goa bench of the Bombay High Court, which overturned his acquittal by the trial court and convicted him in the 2013 sexual assault case, sentencing him to 10 years of rigorous imprisonment. The High Court had directed him to surrender within four weeks.
Tejpal has filed a Special Leave Petition (SLP) in the Supreme Court through advocate Aditya Samaddar, seeking to set aside both his conviction and the 10-year sentence.
The case relates to an alleged sexual assault of a junior colleague inside a hotel elevator in Goa in November 2013 during an event organised by Tehelka. A Goa sessions court had acquitted Tejpal in May 2021, giving him the benefit of the doubt.
The Bombay High Court, however, overturned the acquittal on August 6, 2026, finding Tejpal guilty and imposing a 10-year rigorous imprisonment sentence.
Meanwhile, the Goa government has filed a separate petition before the Supreme Court seeking enhancement of Tejpal’s sentence to life imprisonment. The State has argued that the 10-year sentence is too lenient and grossly disproportionate to the gravity of the offence.
The Supreme Court has now reserved its order on Tejpal’s plea seeking relief from the surrender direction.
