Former Tehelka editor Tarun Tejpal has moved the Supreme Court challenging the Bombay high court’s verdict convicting him in the 2013 sexual assault case, reported news agency PTI.
The state has also challenged the high court’s decision to run the sentences for the two aggravated rape convictions concurrently. The Goa government, however, clarified that its appeal is limited to the quantum of sentence and the direction that the sentences run concurrently. The high court had on August 6 overturned his acquittal by a Goa sessions court and sentenced him to 10 years in prison. The Goa government has also approached the apex court seeking an enhancement of Tejpal’s 10-year prison sentence to life imprisonment, as reported by HT earlier.
In its petition, the state argued that the sentence awarded by the Bombay high court was “grossly disproportionate” to the gravity of the aggravated rape offences committed against his junior colleague. It argued that the alleged assaults occurred on successive days and constituted “separate criminality” that should be reflected in the punishment.
These included Tejpal’s position as the woman’s employer and mentor, as well as his friendship with her father and his relationship with her family. In its plea, the Goa government pointed to several aggravating circumstances recorded by the high court, which it said warranted a punishment beyond the statutory minimum of 10 years.
