Archive · 6 Aug 2026
Bombay High Court to Rule on Tarun Tejpal Acquittal Appeal
Many years ago, in 2013, a woman who worked at a news magazine said that her boss, a famous journalist named Tarun Tejpal, hurt her inside a hotel elevator during an event called ThinkFest in Goa.
The police took the case to a trial court, and in 2021 that court decided Tejpal was not guilty.
The Goa government did not agree with that decision and asked a higher court, the Bombay High Court, to look at the case again.
The High Court listened to lawyers from both sides over three days and kept its decision for later.
The government's lawyer said the first judge made a mistake by expecting all victims of such a crime to behave in a certain way.
He also said an email in which Tejpal apologised showed that something did happen between them.
Tejpal's lawyer said the email was only an apology for a conversation, not a confession of a crime, and that it would have been impossible to keep the elevator moving in a loop as the woman described.
He also said hotel videos did not match her story.
Now the High Court will announce its decision on Thursday morning.
Tejpal has been told that he must be present in court when the decision is read out.
The Bombay High Court at Goa will pronounce its verdict on Thursday on the Goa government's appeal against Tarun Tejpal's 2021 acquittal in a 2013 sexual assault case.
Tejpal, former editor-in-chief of Tehelka, has been directed to remain personally present before Justices Dr Neela Gokhale and Amit Jamsandekar when the verdict is read out.
A former junior colleague alleged Tejpal sexually assaulted her in a hotel elevator during the ThinkFest event at the Grand Hyatt in Bambolim, Goa, on November 7-8, 2013.
A Goa sessions court acquitted Tejpal of all charges in May 2021, citing a lack of medical evidence and saying the complainant showed no 'normative behaviour' expected of an assault survivor.
Solicitor General Tushar Mehta called the trial court's findings 'perverse' for the state, while senior advocate Abad Ponda for the defence challenged the elevator account and the apology email evidence.
- Who
- Tarun Tejpal, former editor-in-chief of Tehelka; the complainant, his former junior colleague; Solicitor General of India Tushar Mehta; defence counsel senior advocate Abad Ponda; and Justices Dr Neela Gokhale and Amit Jamsandekar of the Bombay High Court at Goa.
- What
- The Bombay High Court's verdict on the Goa government's appeal challenging Tejpal's 2021 acquittal in the 2013 sexual assault case.
- When
- The verdict will be pronounced on Thursday morning, August 6, 2026; the alleged assault occurred on November 7-8, 2013, and Tejpal was acquitted by a Goa sessions court in May 2021.
- Where
- Bombay High Court at Goa, in Panaji; the alleged assault took place in a hotel elevator at the Grand Hyatt in Bambolim, Goa, during the ThinkFest event.
- Why
- The Goa government appealed the acquittal, arguing that the trial court's findings were 'perverse' and that it judged the complainant based on preconceived notions of how sexual assault survivors should behave.
Prosecution (Goa Government)
Defence (Tarun Tejpal)
Apology email evidence
Prosecution (Goa Government)
Tejpal's email apologising for a 'lapse of judgment', expressing shame and calling the encounter consensual amounted to an admission that an encounter took place.
Defence (Tarun Tejpal)
The apology emails referred only to a consensual verbal conversation of a sexual nature, contained no admission of a physical encounter, and were sent under institutional pressure, not as a voluntary confession.
Assessing the survivor's conduct
Prosecution (Goa Government)
The sessions court erred by judging the complainant based on preconceived notions of how an assault survivor should behave; there is no universal standard for survivors' reactions, and she remained consistent on core allegations.
Defence (Tarun Tejpal)
The complainant's conduct before and after the incident, along with emails, WhatsApp messages and documentary records, contradicted the prosecution's case.
Elevator account and CCTV evidence
Prosecution (Goa Government)
The trial court gave undue importance to minor inconsistencies instead of examining whether the complainant's core allegations remained consistent.
Defence (Tarun Tejpal)
The claim that Tejpal kept the elevator moving in a 'continuous loop' was mechanically impossible according to expert testimony, and CCTV footage did not show him pulling or dragging the complainant; first-floor footage was never produced.
- Accused
- Tarun Tejpal, former editor-in-chief of Tehelka
- Allegation
- Sexual assault of a former junior colleague inside a hotel elevator
- Incident Date
- November 7-8, 2013, during the ThinkFest event
- Incident Location
- Grand Hyatt hotel, Bambolim, Goa
- Trial Outcome
- Acquitted of all charges by a Goa sessions court in May 2021
- Court
- Bombay High Court at Goa, Panaji
- Judges
- Justices Dr Neela Gokhale and Amit Jamsandekar
- Lead Counsel
- Solicitor General Tushar Mehta (state); senior advocate Abad Ponda (defence)
