Will decide Tejpal plea against surrender before listing appeal against conviction: SC

On Monday, a Single-Judge Bench of the Supreme Court decided that Tarun Tejpal's appeal against his 10-year sentence in a 2013 rape case cannot be listed for hearing until his separate application seeking exemption from surrender is resolved. Justice Alok Aradhe recorded this ruling, stating that the court cannot consider the appeal without first addressing the exemption application.

The bench listed the case for August 25 and directed senior advocate Kapil Sibal, representing Tejpal, to argue the merits of the exemption application on August 31. Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, representing the State of Goa, opposed Tejpal's plea, citing the mandatory nature of surrender requirements under the Supreme Court Rules of 2013.

However, Mehta also argued that the court had the power to waive the surrender requirement if warranted. Tejpal's appeal challenges the August 6 conviction and 10-year sentence handed down by the Bombay High Court, which overturned his acquittal from a trial court five years prior. The Goa Government had appealed to the Supreme Court for a more severe sentence, contending that Tejpal's actions warranted a life imprisonment term.

Tejpal, a 62-year-old journalist, was convicted of raping a junior colleague in a hotel elevator in 2013, and claimed he was the victim of a political conspiracy.