SC judge recuses from hearing Tejpals plea in sexual assault case
New Delhi Jan 21 PTI Supreme Court Judge Justice L Nageswara Rao on Friday recused himself from hearing the appeal of journalist Tarun Tejpal against the Bombay High Courts order rejecting his plea for an in-camera hearing of the proceedings challenging his acquittal in a 2013 rape caseI recuse as at some stage in 2016 I had appeared for state of Goa in the matter Let it be listed in some other court next week said Justice Rao who was sitting with Justice B R Gavai on the benchThe bench was to hear the plea of Tejpal whose application for conducting an in-camera hearing of the proceedings under section 327 of the CrPC was rejected by the Goa bench of the Bombay High Court on November 24 last yearThe acquittal of the former editor-in-chief of Tehelka magazine who was accused of sexually assaulting his then-woman colleague in the lift of a five-star hotel in Goa in November 2013 by a sessions court in May 2021 was challenged in the Goa bench of the high court by the state governmentSenior advocate Amit Desai who had appeared for Tejpal had referred to the Law Commission and various judgements of high courts supporting his application for an in-camera hearingThe high court however had rejected the submissionsSolicitor General Tushar Mehta representing the Goa government had argued that the judgement of acquittal of Tejpal by the district court is in the public domainSection 327 applies for the purpose of inquiring into or trying any offence It has limited application during inquiry or trial The appeal is something very clear Appeals revisions etc are neither investigation nor inquiry nor a trial he had saidIn its order in May last year the Mapusa district and sessions court had held that the complainant had not shown the kind of normative behaviour expected from a victim of sexual assaultThe court had granted Tejpal the benefit of the doubt in the absence of corroborative evidence to support the allegations made by the complainantChallenging Tejpals acquittal the state government had said that the courts judgement was coloured by prejudice and patriarchy PTI SJK DV DV
New Delhi Jan 21 PTI Supreme Court Judge Justice L Nageswara Rao on Friday recused himself from hearing the appeal of journalist Tarun Tejpal against the Bombay High Courts order rejecting his plea for an in-camera hearing of the proceedings challenging his acquittal in a 2013 rape caseI recuse as at some stage in 2016 I had appeared for state of Goa in the matter Let it be listed in some other court next week said Justice Rao who was sitting with Justice B R Gavai on the benchThe bench was to hear the plea of Tejpal whose application for conducting an in-camera hearing of the proceedings under section 327 of the CrPC was rejected by the Goa bench of the Bombay High Court on November 24 last yearThe acquittal of the former editor-in-chief of Tehelka magazine who was accused of sexually assaulting his then-woman colleague in the lift of a five-star hotel in Goa in November 2013 by a sessions court in May 2021 was challenged in the Goa bench of the high court by the state governmentSenior advocate Amit Desai who had appeared for Tejpal had referred to the Law Commission and various judgements of high courts supporting his application for an in-camera hearingThe high court however had rejected the submissionsSolicitor General Tushar Mehta representing the Goa government had argued that the judgement of acquittal of Tejpal by the district court is in the public domainSection 327 applies for the purpose of inquiring into or trying any offence It has limited application during inquiry or trial The appeal is something very clear Appeals revisions etc are neither investigation nor inquiry nor a trial he had saidIn its order in May last year the Mapusa district and sessions court had held that the complainant had not shown the kind of normative behaviour expected from a victim of sexual assaultThe court had granted Tejpal the benefit of the doubt in the absence of corroborative evidence to support the allegations made by the complainantChallenging Tejpals acquittal the state government had said that the courts judgement was coloured by prejudice and patriarchy PTI SJK DV DV
