Journalist Tarun Tejpal moves Supreme Court against conviction in 2013 rape case

Former Tehelka magazine editor-in-chief Tarun Tejpal has filed an appeal to the Supreme Court in an attempt to overturn his conviction and 10-year jail sentence for the 2013 rape of a female journalist. The Goa government has also joined the appeal, requesting an increase in Tejpal's punishment to life imprisonment. On August 6, the Bombay High Court in Goa overturned Tejpal's acquittal by a trial court and convicted him of aggravated rape and related offenses, sentencing him to ten years in prison.

The victim accused Tejpal of sexually assaulting her twice inside a hotel lift in Goa while they were alone during a literary festival in November 2013. She informed colleagues of the assault that night and filed a complaint with Tehelka's managing editor a week later. Tejpal responded with two apology emails before the matter became public.

In May 2021, Tejpal was acquitted of all charges by an additional sessions court in Mapusa, who stated that the woman's messages to him indicated she was not traumatized or terrified, which contradicts the prosecution's case.