Indian court sentences high-profile journalist to 10 years for rape

06-Aug-2026

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An Indian court has sentenced prominent journalist Tarun Tejpal to 10 years in prison on charge of raping a junior colleague more than a decade ago, overturning an earlier acquittal.

Tejpal, 63, was accused of raping a female colleague in a lift at a five-star hotel during a Tehelka magazine event in 2013.

The Goa bench of Bombay High Court on August 6 also ordered Tejpal to pay a fine of $5,250.

Tejpal denied the allegations and said before the verdict that he would appeal.

The allegations emerged during a period of heightened public concern over sexual violence against women, culminating in mass protests after a 23-year-old student was gang raped on a bus in New Delhi in December 2012. In response, the government strengthened rape laws.

In its verdict, the Goa bench on August 6 overturned a 2021 acquittal by a Goa court, which dismissed charges of rape, sexual harassment and wrongful restraint against Tejpal.