New Delhi:
Tarun Tejpal, the founder of Tehelka, who has been accused of sexual assault by a young journalist of the magazine in Goa earlier this month, is considering all his legal options and may move the High Court to ask for the case to be transferred out of Goa, as he fears he may not get a fair trial there, sources have said.
Here are the latest developments in this story:
The Goa Police today said they will slap fresh charges against Mr Tejpal, if required, since many things have emerged in the probe. "If additional charges are required, they will be added according to the development in the course of action," Deputy Inspector General of Police OP Mishra said in Panaji.
Earlier today, the Goa Police questioned three employees of Tehelka in connection with the allegations of sexual assault against Mr Tejpal. The police had questioned Tehelka's Managing Editor Shoma Chaudhury yesterday.
The three employees were questioned for nearly four hours as witnesses. The cops are also in the process of collecting Mr Tejpal's emails in connection with the incident and the complaint of the girl to the magazine's management following which he is likely to be questioned.
Ms Chaudhury and a few employees were questioned for more than nine hours yesterday.
According to Tehelka, their questioning began at 4:30 pm on Saturday evening and ended at 2 am on Sunday. The police recorded their statements at the magazine's office in South Delhi and asked Ms Chaudhury to hand over all related documents and emails to assist them in their investigation. (Watch)
"Yesterday, at the Tehelka office, the Goa police took my deposition for about nine hours, it was extremely courteous experience and I fully cooperated and showed every document that was relevant, every email exchange that was there between my colleagues, the management, it was shared, it was a good experience and I hope it helps bring clarity and justice to the entire case," Ms Chaudhury said today.
Last evening, the young journalist who has said that she was sexually assaulted in Goa by Mr Tejpal, said that she is worried about her family being harassed by his associates. The journalist released a statement in which she said a member of Mr Tejpal's immediate family visited her mother's home in Delhi last night and asked what the young woman "wanted" and who is assisting her legally. (Read: Tarun Tejpal's relative asked what I "wanted", says journalist)
Today, the National Commission for Women asked the Mumbai Police to provide security to the journalist.
The police case is based on an email sent to Ms Chaudhury by the journalist on Monday, which was later leaked. Legal experts say the email clearly outlines criminal offences and that Ms Chaudhury broke the law by not reporting the matter to the police.
Mr Tejpal suggested in a statement on Friday that his version of events is different from what the young journalist has detailed. However, in an apology that Mr Tejpal had emailed to the young woman on Tuesday, he referred to a "shameful lapse of judgement that led me to attempt a sexual liaison with you on two occasions on 7 November and 8 November 2013, despite your clear reluctance that you did not want such attention from me."
Post a comment