The State of Goa on Tuesday (August 18, 2026) moved the Supreme Court challenging the quantum of sentence given to former Tehelka editor Tarun Tejpal in a 2013 rape case.
The High Court had set aside his acquittal by a Goa sessions court five years ago. The State said the sentence was manifestly inadequate, but clarified that it did not want to challenge or reopen the findings or conclusions on merit recorded by the Bombay High Court in a judgment on August 6.
claiming he was a “political victim” and the father of two daughters, Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, appearing for Goa, had demanded the maximum punishment to send a strong message While Tejpal had pleaded for leniency in the High Court. The State said the 10-year prison sentence pronounced by the High Court was “grossly disproportionate to the nature and gravity of the offences” committed by Tejpal.
“The present case warrants enhancement of sentence to imprisonment for life, or such enhanced sentence as this court may deem appropriate, and the sentences ought not to have been directed to run concurrently,” the State’s petition said. The High Court had termed the trial court’s 2021 order as “perverse”.
