Ex-Tehelka editor Tarun Tejpal surrenders before Goa court after 2013 sexual assault conviction

In August, the top court called in Tejpal to surrender before the court after he was convicted in a 2013 rape and sexual assault case.

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Tarun Tejpal, former editor-in-chief of Tehelka magazine, surrendered before the Mapusa Court in Goa on Monday. As per reports, this comes after the Supreme Court of India called on the journalist to surrender before his appeal against the conviction is taken up.

In August, the top court called in Tejpal to surrender before the court after he was convicted in a 2013 rape and sexual assault case.

Appearing for Tejpal, senior advocate Kapil Sibal, argued for the surrender exemption, saying that the incident was of 2013 and the journalist had earlier spent around six months in jail in the case.

"He (Tejpal) has throughout been on bail since then. The high court has directed him to surrender within four weeks. This court may fix the main appeal for hearing on August 31," he told the court.

Rejecting his plea for exemption, the Supreme Court directed Tejpal to submit his surrender certificate and stated that his appeal will be heard only once he does so.

"In case the surrender certificate is filed on or before September 21, 2026, the registry shall list the criminal appeal for hearing on September 22, 2026 before the regular court," the court said.

On August 6, the Goa bench of the Bombay high court convicted Tejpal of rape and sexual assault. He was sentenced to 10 years in prison.

The case pertains to allegations made by a female journalist who accused Tejpal of sexually assaulting her inside a hotel elevator on November 7 and 8, 2013.

Following the conviction, Tejpal told reporters that he will file an appeal to challenge the conviction and his surrender.

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