Archive · 10 Aug 2026
BJP questions Congress on Tejpal conviction, targets Rahul on Jharkhand
Many years ago, in 2013, the editor of a famous news magazine called Tehelka did a very bad thing to a woman who worked with him at a hotel in Goa.
A big court, the Bombay High Court, has now said he is guilty of hurting her and must go to jail for 10 years.
Back in 2021, a smaller court had said he was not guilty, but the big court disagreed and called that decision very wrong.
The editor, Tarun Tejpal, says he will ask the country's highest court to look at his case again.
Meanwhile, a political party called the BJP is upset with another party called the Congress.
The BJP says Congress has stayed silent about Tejpal's punishment because the two have been friends for a very long time.
The BJP also says Congress leader Rahul Gandhi is staying quiet about students who are protesting in Jharkhand.
The students are worried about jobs, cheating in exams, and unfair hiring.
The BJP thinks Rahul Gandhi only speaks up about students when it helps his own politics.
Now we have to wait and see what the highest court decides.
BJP spokesperson Sudhanshu Trivedi questioned Congress's silence over former Tehelka editor-in-chief Tarun Tejpal's conviction in a 2013 rape case.
The Bombay High Court sentenced Tejpal to 10 years' rigorous imprisonment, calling the trial court's 2021 acquittal 'perverse'.
Tejpal, 63, was convicted of raping a junior colleague in a hotel elevator in Goa during a Tehelka event; he plans to challenge the verdict in the Supreme Court.
Trivedi alleged a two-decade-old 'nexus' between Congress and Tehelka, citing a 2004 letter from Sonia Gandhi to P Chidambaram and other instances.
Trivedi accused Congress and Rahul Gandhi of 'double standards' for not commenting on Jharkhand students' protests over jobs, paper leaks, and recruitment.
- Who
- BJP national spokesperson Sudhanshu Trivedi, who levelled the accusations; Congress and Rahul Gandhi, who are accused; and former Tehelka editor-in-chief Tarun Tejpal, whose conviction is the focus.
- What
- BJP questioned Congress's silence on Tarun Tejpal's rape conviction and accused Rahul Gandhi of double standards over students' protests in Jharkhand.
- When
- Monday (August 10) at a press conference in New Delhi; the Bombay High Court's conviction was delivered on the preceding Thursday.
- Where
- BJP headquarters in New Delhi; the conviction was delivered by the Bombay High Court; students' protests are in Ranchi, Jharkhand; the original crime occurred in Goa.
- Why
- BJP alleges a longstanding nexus between Congress and Tehelka and says Congress's silence shows a one-sided, partisan approach to women's rights and press freedom; on Jharkhand, it says Gandhi's silence serves political interests.
Congress and defense viewpoint
BJP and prosecution viewpoint
Silence over Tejpal's conviction
Congress and defense viewpoint
Congress has issued no public response to the conviction, according to the article; Tejpal intends to appeal to the Supreme Court.
BJP and prosecution viewpoint
BJP says Congress's silence exposes a nearly two-decade-old nexus with Tehelka and a one-sided, partisan approach to women's rights and press freedom.
Guilt in the 2013 rape case
Congress and defense viewpoint
A trial court acquitted Tejpal in 2021, and he maintains he will challenge the new verdict.
BJP and prosecution viewpoint
The Bombay High Court found him guilty, sentenced him to 10 years' imprisonment, and called the acquittal 'perverse,' saying complainants should not have to be 'perfect victims.'
Jharkhand students' protests
Congress and defense viewpoint
Congress and Rahul Gandhi have made no comment on the Ranchi protests, per the article.
BJP and prosecution viewpoint
Trivedi says their silence is a 'double standard,' contrasting it with Gandhi's earlier interventions in student agitations in Kota and Prayagraj and calling it politically motivated.
- Convicted person
- Tarun Tejpal, former editor-in-chief of Tehelka
- Age
- 63
- Offence
- Rape of a junior colleague in 2013
- Incident location
- Hotel elevator in Goa during a Tehelka event
- Sentence
- 10 years' rigorous imprisonment
- Court
- Bombay High Court
- Earlier verdict
- Trial court acquittal in 2021, termed 'perverse'
- Tejpal's next step
- Challenge the conviction in the Supreme Court