Bombay HC admits Goa govt's plea against Tejpal's acquittal in rape case

The Goa bench of the Bombay High Court on Saturday admitted the state government's application challenging the acquittal of journalist Tarun Tejpal in a 2013 rape case.

The sessions court had last year acquitted Tejpal of all charges, following which the state government filed a petition before the High Court challenging the order. Tejpal had challenged the maintainability of the application.

In an order on Saturday, the division bench of Justices R N Laddha and M S Sonak allowed the application filed by the state government.

"The court is not expected to go into the minute details of the prosecution's evidence. At this stage, if the material on record discloses the necessity of deeper scrutiny and reappreciation, review, or reconsideration of evidence, the appellate court must grant leave as sought for and decide the appeal on merits," the bench observed.

The court said that it not only rejects the preliminary objections raised on behalf of the respondent regarding the maintainability of this application, but further allows the application and grants leave under section 378(3) of CrPC, which refers to appeal in case of acquittal.

"The decision of instituting an appeal against acquittal, in the present case, cannot be said to be a product of non-application of mind or the result of the state government acting under the dictation of some extraneous authority," the court noted.

The high court also ordered Tejpal to seek bail from the trial court within 15 days.

The record bears out that the respondent had been enlarged on bail, subject to certain terms and conditions. There is nothing on record to suggest that the respondent had at any stage breached the terms and conditions subject to which he was enlarged on bail, it said.

The high court also allowed the application filed by Tejpal to get his passport from the court, as it is due for renewal.

The bench directed that once the respondent appears before the trial court within 15 days, the court should order the release of his passport for enabling him to renew the same. On May 21, 2021, a sessions court acquitted Tejpal, the former editor-in-chief of Tehelka magazine, in the case where he was accused of sexually assaulting his then-colleague in a lift of a five-star hotel in Goa in November 2013 where they were present to attend an event.