Tehelka Live: Goa Police to record statement of victim
by 11 mins ago
8.55 am: Goa Police in Mumbai, to question Tejpal sexual assault victim
A team of Goa Police officials have arrived in Mumbai to record the statement of the woman journalist who has accused Tehelka editor Tarun Tejpal of sexual assault.
The Police may then ask the woman to travel to Goa to record her statement again under a Magistrate.
Post this, the police are likely to travel back to New Delhi and question Tejpal.
7.55 am: Urvashi Butalia refuses to head sexual harassment committee
Renowned feminist and author Urvashi Butalia has refused to be a member of the formal complaints committee to probe the charges of sexual assault against Tehelka editor-in-chief Tarun Tejpal saying the panel was now redundant as the due process under law has already begun.
Last Thursday, Tehelka managing editor Shoma Chaudhury had said that a formal complaints committee had been constituted, in accordance to Vishaka guidelines.
The committee, she said, would be presided over by Urvashi Butalia, eminent feminist and publisher, to investigate the matter. The other members of the committee were yet to be announced.
7.10 am: The organisation has failed me, victim tells Shoma ChaudhuryA team of Goa Police officials have arrived in Mumbai to record the statement of the woman journalist who has accused Tehelka editor Tarun Tejpal of sexual assault.
The Police may then ask the woman to travel to Goa to record her statement again under a Magistrate.
Post this, the police are likely to travel back to New Delhi and question Tejpal.
7.55 am: Urvashi Butalia refuses to head sexual harassment committee
Renowned feminist and author Urvashi Butalia has refused to be a member of the formal complaints committee to probe the charges of sexual assault against Tehelka editor-in-chief Tarun Tejpal saying the panel was now redundant as the due process under law has already begun.
Last Thursday, Tehelka managing editor Shoma Chaudhury had said that a formal complaints committee had been constituted, in accordance to Vishaka guidelines.
The committee, she said, would be presided over by Urvashi Butalia, eminent feminist and publisher, to investigate the matter. The other members of the committee were yet to be announced.
In a resignation letter to Tehelka's managing editor Shoma Chaudhury, the woman journalist who has accused Tarun Tejpal of sexual assault said she was deeply traumatised by the lack of support offered by Tehelka.
I am resigning from my position as ****** at Tehelka magazine, with immediate effect, because Tehelka's Editor-in-Chief Tarun Tejpal sexually molested me on two occasions in November this year.
I am deeply traumatized by the lack of support offered by the organization. In such circumstances, it is untenable for me to continue to work for this organization.
In the public acknowledgement sent to the bureau, Mr Tejpal and you referred to his act of sexual violation as “an untoward incident”- this was not an attempt to “protect the institution” but in fact, an attempt to cover up what had really occurred-the act of sexual molestation, an admission of the facts that Mr Tejpal had “attempted sexual liaison” with me (to quote his email) on two occasions despite my “reluctance to receive such attention”.
Read more here.
Updates for 25 November end.
5.36 pm: Victim agrees to cooperate with Goa police probe
The female journalist who said that she had been sexually assaulted by Tehelka managing editor Tarun Tejpal has agreed to give a statement to the Goa police, CNN-IBN reported.
The victim is likely to be brought to Panjim tomorrow, the channel said, adding that her statement would be recorded in front of the magistrate in Panjim.
Meanwhile well known author and activist Arundhati Roy has also slammed Tejpal for vilifying the woman in subsequent statements, in a blog for the Outlook magazine.
She writes:
Outrageously, it is being suggested that Tarun is being 'framed' for political reasons-presumably by the Right-wing Hindutva brigade. So now a young woman who he very recently saw fit to employ, is not just a loose woman, but an agent of the fascists? This is Rape Number Two: the rape of the values and the politics that Tehelka claims it stands for, and an affront to those who work there and who have supported it in the past."
Read the whole blog here
1.50 pm: Woman journalist, who alleged sexual assault, resigns from Tehelka
The woman journalist who has accused Tehelka editor Tarun Tejpal of sexual assault today resigned from Tehelka.
According to CNN-IBN, the journalist said "it was impossible to work at the organisation."
On Saturday, the journalist had said immediate family members had met her mother in New Delhi and said Tejpal was trying to intimidate her.
Meanwhile, the Goa Police will hold a press conference today at 5 pm.
1.30 pm: What can happen in 4 minutes, that too in a lift? asks Parrikar
Goa Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar has lashed out at Tehelka Editor Tarun Tejpal alleging that the claim that the act was consensual could not be true.
"Someone told me that this man (Tarun Tejpal) is saying that it is consensual. I wonder what he must have done within four minutes and that too in a lift," Parrikar reacted last evening addressing a function in south Goa.
Parrikar said that the police are doing their duty by having filed the FIR against Tejpal, whose conduct is "inhuman". "What he has done is inhuman," the chief minister said. - PTI
11.55 am: Arrest Shoma Chaudhury for protecting Tejpal, says Goa Women's Commission chief
Goa State Commission for Women Chairperson Vidya Shet Tanavade today said that the Goa Police should arrest Tehelka Managing Editor Shoma Chaudhury as she has 'protected Tejpal', news agency ANI reported.
On Saturday, Tanavade had said the commission had written to the deputy inspector general (DIG) of Goa Police for a full report on the incident so that the commission could conduct its own investigation. Based on its findings, the commission will make its recommendations, she had said.
10.45 am: Delhi HC to hear Tejpal's bail plea on Tuesday
Editor-in-chief of Tehelka Tarun Tejpal on Monday moved the Delhi High Court seeking anticipatory bail in the suo-moto sexual assault case against him by the Goa Police.
A team of Goa Police will reportedly meet the Tehelka journalist at her Mumbai residence to record her statement in the case, post which they are likely to question Tejpal.
Media reports also said that Tejpal could move the Goa bench of the Bombay HC asking that the case be transferred out of the state.
On Saturday, a team of Goa Police quizzed Tehelka's Managing editor Shoma Chaudhury in New Delhi and collected all correspondence related to the case.
07:00 am: Colleagues corroborated victim's statment, Tejpal could be summoned later
A report in the Times of India states that the three journalists who the victim included in her email to the managing editor Shoma Chaudhury have corroborated her version before the Goa Police team.
"I corroborated the chain of events as already explained by the complainant in her letter to the Tehelka management. Evidently, we were not eyewitnesses to the actual incidents. But I have given the details of our conversation and other requirements to the police. I support the complainant, (who is) my friend and colleague completely," Tehelka photo editor Ishan Tankha was quoted as saying.
The police was also quoted in the report as saying that they would send a team to interview the victim in the case at her residence in Mumbai.
According to a report in the Hindu, the police plan to question Tejpal only after they have recorded the victim's statement in the case.
However, this decision to leave Tejpal alone hasn't gone down well with the National Commission for Women that wanted him to be questioned by the team from Goa.
"It should have arrested him immediately and taken him to Goa for custodial interrogation. I don't understand why the Goa police did not do that," Nirmala Samant-Prabhavalkar from the NCW was quoted as saying in a DNA report.
End of updates for 25 November
7.00 pm: Have fully cooperated with police, says Shoma Choudhary
Tehelka Managing Editor Shoma Chaudhary, who was questioned for nine hours by a Goa Police team in connection of the alleged sexual assault case against Editor Tarun Tejpal, today said she "fully cooperated" with the police and hoped it will bring "clarity and justice" to the case.
"Yesterday, at the Tehelka office, the Goa Police took my deposition for about 9 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," Chaudhary said.
The three-member Goa Police today flew back after recording statements of three employees of the magazine who had been contacted by the victim to corroborate her version.
The police had questioned Chaudhary for around nine hours from 4:45 PM yesterday to around 2 AM at the magazine's office in posh Greater Kailash-II in South Delhi. The investigating team took into custody email exchanges among Chaudhary, the woman journalist and Tejpal, a CPU, besides several documents.
6.45 pm: Goa police might press additional charges against Tejpal
Goa Police today did not rule out the possibility of pressing additional charges against Tehelka Editor Tarun Tejpal, who has been booked on charge of raping a woman colleague in a five-star hotel in the state.
Deputy Inspector General of Police O P Mishra told reporters during a press conference at the police headquarters here that many things have emerged during the probe and if required, additional charges would be pressed against the accused.
"There are many things which emerged during the course of investigation. The investigation is a dynamic process and as soon as it is carried forward and things emerged, if additional charges are required, they will be added according to the development in the course of action," Mishra said.
He said the Crime Branch team that had visited Delhi, has examined Tehelka Managing Editor Shoma Chaudhury and also taken into possession relevant documents.
"They have also seized certain electronic items during the investigation," the DIG said. The police team, he said, has also "examined more people in the case."
"After carrying out the first round of questioning, the team has left Delhi. They are likely to reach Goa and carry out further investigation into the case," he added.
PTI
5.50 pm: Goa cops question 3 employees in Tehelka sexual assault case
The Goa police team probing the alleged sexual assault case against Tehelka Editor Tarun Tejpal returned today after questioning three employees of the magazine who had been contacted by the victim to corroborate her version as it seized a hard disc and documents.
Contrary to reports, the three-member police team, which had flown into Delhi from Panaji yesterday, left without questioning Tejpal.
The police had questioned Tehelka Managing Editor Shoma Chaudhury for around nine hours from 4:45 PM yesterday to around 2 am at the magazine's office in posh Greater Kailash-II in South Delhi.
The investigating team took into custody the e-mail exchanges among Chaudhury, the woman journalist and Tejpal, a CPU, besides several documents.
5.00 pm: Will take action against those sharing victim's mail: Goa DIG
Goa DIG OP Mishra has confirmed that his police team has not established contact with Tehelka editor Tarun Tejpal as yet, but they have questioned other people related to the case.
Speaking to the media, Mishra said that they had received several statements and had also seized several electronic items deemed to be important to the case.
He also appealed to the media and public to stop sharing details of what had happened to the victim, including the emails she is believed to have written to Managing editor Shoma Chaudhury, with explicit details of what happened to her.
"Publishing details of the victims email have criminal implications as well. We have taken note, and will not hesitate to use legal action if violations take place", he said, adding that media organisations needed to be sensitive.
4.13 pm: Fully cooperated with Goa police, says Shoma Chaudhury
Tehelka Managing editor Shoma Chaudhury told CNN-IBN that she had fully cooperated with Goa police and shared all details with them. "I have shared every email, every communication and action taken in the case and I'll be happy to share anything else the police wants to know", she told the channel.
Choudhury was questioned by the Goa police for nine hours on Saturday. Three colleagues of the victim whom she confided were questioned today, and reports indicated that they had corroborated the victim's version of events.
"I know nothing about details of 3 Tehelka staffers who deposed today", Choudhary said. "Everyone involved must speak out fearlessly".
The police team from Goa has returned to Delhi after having questioned several people key to the case.
3.30 pm: NCW asks Mumbai police to provide security to the victim
According to IBN-Live, the National Commission for Women has written to the Mumbai Police asking them to provide security to the woman journalist who has accused Tarun Tejpal of sexually assaulting her.
The victim had yesterday release a public statement saying she feared intimidation from Tejpal's family and friends.
2.26 pm: Tehelka witnesses corroborate victim's version
Three colleagues of the woman journalist who claims she was assaulted by Tarun Tejpal, have reportedly corroborated the victim's version of events.
The police spoke to all three today, as they were considered crucial witnesses in the case. In her letter to Tehelka managing editor Shoma Chaudhury, the victim had said that she had told her three colleagues about what had transpired with Tejpal.
Meanwhile reports said that Choudhury, who was questioned for nine hours on Saturday, was likely to be called in for further questioning today. Tejpal may also be questioned.
The statements were recorded at at Goa Sadan in Delhi.
PTI quoted sources as saying that a three-member team of Goa police led by Deputy Superintendent of Police Sammy Tavares, which arrived in Delhi on Saturday, had gone to the magazine's office and questioned Chaudhary and a couple of other employees.
Later, the team, which also includes Sunita Sawant who is the Investigating Officer in the case, also recorded the statements of Chaudhary and the other Tehelka employees questioned, they said.
12.55 pm: Tejpal to move court?
The latest development in the Tejpal sexual assault case is that Tehelka editor-in-chief Tarun Tejpal is contemplating moving court in a bid to get the probe transferred.
The Times Now television channel reported that Tejpal was planning to move courts and ask that the investigation into the matter be moved from the Goa police to an independent agency.
The channel also said that a writ petition was being prepared, questioning the impartiality of the probe if it were to be conducted in Goa.
Meanwhile other reports indicated that the Goa police were getting to set to file additional charges against Tejpal, including that of criminal intimidation.
10:20 am: Goa Police question victim's colleagues
The Goa Police team is presently questioning three witnesses in the case, reports Times Now.
The three witnesses are the three colleagues the victim had confided in following the incident and were copied in the emails she had written to managing editor Shoma Chaudhury.
9:00 am : Tejpal, victim could be questioned by Goa Police
The Goa Police team that questioned managing editor of Tehelka Shoma Chaudhury is likely to question her today as well.
However, after their questioning of Chaudhury they could call former editor-in chief Tarun Tejpal as well today.
According to reports, the team may also question the victim in this case.
CNN-IBN reported that the team will be questioning three witnesses in the case at Goa Sadan in Delhi today. However, the police hasn't disclosed who the three will be.
The Goa Police has already said that there was no CCTV camera inside the hotel in which the incident took place and will be relying on statements from witnesses.
End of updates for 23 November
8.25 pm: Hollywood legend Robert de Niro finds inadvertent mention in FIR
Firstpost has exclusive possession of the first information report (FIR) filed by the Crime Branch, which formally accuses Tehelka editor-in-chief of sexually assaulting a junior colleague in an elevator of Grand Hyatt, a five star resort located near the capital.
The Oscar award winning actor's name now unwittingly features prominently all over the FIR filed by the Goa Police at 2 pm on Friday, 22 November.
The FIR contains exercepts from the woman journalist's letter to managing editor Shoma Chaudhury where de Niro's name features repeatedly. Read more here.
7.50 pm: Family member of Tejpal visited me, fear intimidation, says journalist
The woman journalist who has accused Tehelka founder Tarun Tejpal of sexual assault has reportedly issued a statement saying one of Tejpal's immediate family members came to her mother's house in New Delhi to ask her who she was seeking legal help from and what she wanted as the result of the complaint.
Below is the full text of her statement:
"On the night of 22nd of November 2013, a member of Mr Tejpal's immediate family came to my mother's house in New Delhi, asking my mother to protect Mr Tejpal and demanded to know 1) who I was seeking legal help from and 2) what I "wanted" as the result of my complaint of sexual molestation by Mr Tejpal, that was made to the Tehelka management earlier this week.
This visit has placed tremendous emotional pressure on my family and I at an intensely traumatic time. I fear this may be the beginning of a period of further intimidation and harassment.
I call upon all persons connected to Mr Tejpal and his associates to refrain from approaching me or my family members."
6.55 pm: Will offer all cooperation to police officials, says Tejpal's lawyer
Former editor of Tehelka Tarun Tejpal's lawyer has reportedly said that the team of Goa Police which is currently in Delhi has not yet got in touch with him, adding that his client will offer all necessary cooperation to the investigating team.
Speaking to NDTV, Raian Karanjawala, Tejpal's lawyer, said, "We have not been contacted by the police so far. We will cooperate with the police... We will put out our version to the police."
6.25 pm: Shoma should have defended the victim from day one, she didn't, says Revati Laul
Revati Laul, a former Tehelka employee and a friend of the victim said the behaviour of Shoma Chaudhury clearly indicated that she was firmly on the side of Tarun Tejpal.
Speaking to CNN-IBN this evening, Laul questioned the need for Tarun to speak through Shoma in his apology to Tehelka staffers.
"Why should Tarun be speaking through Shoma? Why should the perpetrator be speaking through Shoma? Shoma should have come out in support of the victim from day one... she didn't... merely saying won't help."
On being asked if her friend would approach the police on her own, Laul said it was irrelevant now as the police has already taken suo-moto action in the case. "Many are asking why she doesn't come out and make a statement to the public... I think it is valid for her to make her first statement before the magistrate and not in public."
Laul further said this was a clear case of rape and lauded the victim for taking on Tehelka. "I believe it was completely non consensual... he (Tejpal) even said he was sorry and he takes complete responsibility for forcing himself on her... Tarun's act was much more that transgressing the editor-journalist relationship, it was rape."
4.55 pm: Goa Police at Tehelka office, to quiz officials
A joint team of Delhi and Goa Police have arrived at the Tehelka office in South Delhi and will question staff who were present during the ThinkFest.
The police may also seize electronic devices used during the festival including laptops, iPads, hard disk drives.
4.20 pm: Goa Police to question Tehelka staff
A team of Goa Police officials are likely to question Tehelka staff who were at the Think Fest event held in Goa earlier this month, media reports said.
Earlier today the Goa Police had met Managing Editor Shoma Chaudhury, who confirmed to reporters that all information and documents sought by the investigative agencies have been provided.
1.45 pm: Gave all info to Goa Police, says Shoma
Shoma Chaudhury, managing editor of Tehelka, was the first person that the Goa Police team met in Delhi. Soon after, Chaudhury told reporters that she has provided with all the information and documents that the police wanted. PTI quotes her:
"I have given all the information demanded by Goa Police and even talked to them regarding any more help needed from my side," Shoma Chaudhury said, refuting reports in the media that she had not been cooperative with investigators.
According to the DIG, the victim in question has also been intimated by the police tea m via email that she might be required to talk to the team. "We have already emailed her. And it is everyone's moral duty to assist in the probe," said the DIG. Other reports suggest that the victim has agreed to cooperate with the Goa Police and record her version of the incident.
1.08 pm: Hotel doesn't have CCTV camera footage, says DIG, Goa Police
In another shocking turn to the Tehelka sexual assault case, now the DIG of Goa Police has told the press that the elevator, inside which Tejpal allegedly accosted the victim, has no CCTV cameras. "The lobbies and aisles of the hotel are fitted with CCTV cameras. But there are no cameras inside the elevators," a reporter told CNN IBN.
11.28 am: Goa Police team reaches Delhi
A team from Goa Police who left for Delhi early today morning has reached the capital, reports CNN IBN. Sources claim that Tejpal will be questioned shortly. Meanwhile Delhi Police has assured full support and cooperation to the Goa police team. According to PTI, the team will meet Shoma Chaudhury first.
They will first record the the Managing Editor's statement and then collect emails of the victim in which she had complained about the alleged sexual assault by Tejpal.
With inputs from PTI
10.37 am: CCTV footage from inside elevator not available, says Goa Police
A source from Goa confirms meanwhile that the Goa police have said CCTV footage from the elevator where the assault is said to have taken place is not available.
No reason was given for the unavailability. Police confirmed that there is CCTV footage from outside the elevator which shows the victim moving out in a hurry.
9.35 am: 'I have violated long standing relationship'
According to more emails accessed by several houses, in another letter addressed to the victim Tejpal had admitted to have 'violated' her trust and apologized for breaching the boundaries of dignity. A report on The Indian Express states that in an email sent to the victim a day after she complained to managing editor Shoma Chaudhury, Tejpal aslo confessed that he had tried establishing sexual contact on two occasions - 7 November and 8 November - despite having understood that the girl did not reciprocate his intentions.
However, the victim, in reply wrote back saying, "he sexually molested me, on two separate occasions and that he violated my bodily integrity and trust".
When contacted by The Indian Express Tejpal said that he had written the mails because managing editor Shoma Chaudhury had insisted he issues an apology as demanded by the victim to close a 'contentious' issue. He added that he has a completely different version of the events which will be revealed in course of the probe.
Read the full report here.
9.00 am: Goa Police team leaves for Delhi
After they filed a suo motu FIR in the sexual assault case, a team from Goa Police left for Delhi today. Tarun Tejpal in his last public statement had offered his 'full cooperation' with the police and later in the day Tehelka's managing editor Shoma Chaudhury also said that they are willing and prepared to assist a probe.
Consequently, the team left today morning from Goa, reports CNN IBN.
End of updates from 22 November
10.20 pm: I am being framed, political forces behind it, says Tejpal
Former editor of Tehelka Tarun Tejpal on Friday said he was being framed by in the alleged sexual assault case and said the truth in the matter will come out soon.
In an emailed response to The Indian Express, Tejpal said: "It is a totally mendacious account of what happened, in its details, in its tonalities, in its very suggestion of non-consensus."
Tejpal further told the daily that he was getting "rock solid support from family, friends and most of my colleagues. They know the details and know how much is being dangerously falsified".
"It's been rough and debilitating and we'll claw our way back as the facts become clear," he said.
8.55 pm: Incident unfortunate, let law take its own course, says Tewari
Information and Broadcasting Minister Manish Tewari today said the legal process relating to the allegation of sexual assault against Tehelka editor Tarun Tejpal should be allowed to reach its logical conclusion.
"The alleged incident is unfortunate. There is a legal process which is playing itself out. It should be allowed to reach its logical conclusion. It is incumbent upon all concerned to cooperate with legal processes and procedures," Tewari
said.
Meanwhile, Law Minister Kapil Sibal said whatever has come out should be probed. "Whatever has come out should be probed," he said when asked to comment on the issue.
6.39 pm: Tejpal says he apologised because Shoma Chaudhry insisted
Tarun Tejpal has reportedly said that he only apologised "out of an attempt to preserve the girl's dignity and on "Shoma's adamantine feminist-principle insistence" that he keep correct form by apologising", according to The Hoot.
More on what Tejpal's version of events is at The Hoot.
6.23 pm: MHA seeks more details into Tejpal assault case
Minister of State for Home Affairs RPN Singh has just officially confirmed that the MHA has asked for more details on the Tejpal sexual assault case, saying that it was an 'extremely serious matter'.
Singh made the comment on his Twitter feed:
Earlier as well, the MHA had asked the Goa police for more information into the incident.
6.00 pm: Feel dirty for having participated in Think India, says Park Street rape survivor
5.45 pm: Shoma Chaudhry's conduct is shameful, says Tavleen Singh
Speaking to NDTV, Tavleen Singh has lashed out at Tehelka managing editor Shoma Chaudhury, saying that her statements made it seem as though it was Tarun Tejpal who was the victim, and not the girl who had been sexually assaulted.
Anti-corrution activist Kiran Bedi added that "Chaudhury had lost it", saying that it would have been better if she had said nothing at all.
5.40 pm: Tejpal is the culprit, says Goa CM Parrikar
Goa Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar has said that one thing was certain in the entire sexual assault case - that Tejpal was the culprit and the young girl was the victim.
Speaking to Times Now, Parrikar refused to comment on the police investigation, saying that it was up to the police to collect evidence to prosecute. He also cautioned media that only an FIR had been filed, adding that this was not the same thing as a chargesheet.
5.15 pm: Delhi police team reach Tarun Tejpal's residence
A team of officers from the Delhi police visited Tarun Tejpal's Delhi residence. The team had left after a few minutes, and had reportedly only said that they had come to deliver some papers to Tejpal.
Another officer said they had come to see that there were untoward incidents outside Tejpal's home.
However Times Now reported that the Goa police had formally asked the Delhi police for help in its investigation into the sexual assault case against the Tehelka editor. It is not yet known if the police visit is related to this request. It is likely that they were checking to see if Tejpal was still in the national capital.
A Goa police is reportedly en route to Delhi, in connection with a suo moto FIR it filed into the incident after perusing CCTV footage. The police have charged Tejpal with rape.
3.41 pm: Tehelka is legally bound to cooperate with police probe, says Goa DGP
The Goa police has constituted a special team to investigate the Tarun Tejpal sexual assault case, according to DGP Kishan Kumar.
Addressing a media conference, Kumar said that they had already written to Shoma Chaudhury, asking her to hand over the correspondence by the victim, adding that the management of Tehelka was legally bound to do so.
He added that he could speak about the arrest of Tejpal, saying that it was for the IO to conduct necessary procedures according to law.
3.10 pm: Don't call Tejpal a rapist, says Shoma Chaudhury
Meanwhile speaking to NDTV, Tehelka managing editor Shoma Chaudhury hit out at the fact that Tejpal was being accused of 'rape', saying that basic reporting guidelines dictated that the word 'alleged' should be used in describing the incident.
In particular she referred to BJP leader Arun Jaitley, saying that as an eminent lawyer and former law minister, he should have known better than to take such a strong position in calling the incident rape. She added that now that the case was no longer an institutional affair and was in the public domain, Tejpal had a right to provide his version of the story.
Chaudhury added that it was sad that she was being seen as acting against the victim, when she was actually very proud that she had spoken out. "That said however, in a public discourse my loyalty is to the truth, and my allegiance is to both sides", she said.
She added however that if the girl's statement was proven to be correct, she would call the incident rape or an attempt to rape.
2.50 pm: Goa police team leaves for Delhi to arrest Tejpal
A team of policemen from Goa has left for Delhi to arrest Tehelka editor Tarun Tejpal, according to a report by the NDTV news channel.
The news came even as the Goa police confirmed that it has filed an FIR in the case, and Tejpal broke his silence to say that he would fully cooperate with the probe.
The police action to file the FIR and their move to arrest Tejpal despite the lack of a complaint from the victim are done in accordance with more stringent powers granted to them to act against sexual assault under the new anti-rape provisions that were passed by Parliament.
2:40 pm: ABVP holds protest rally outside Tehelka office
A group of ABVP activists are holding a protest outside the Tehelka office.
Their demand? The immediate arrest of Tehelka's former editor-in-chief Tarun Tejpal
2:20 pm: Parrikar says he has asked police to deal with case with an iron hand
"I have told the police to act as per the rule of law," Parrikar told Times Now.
Parrikar said that he had asked the police to deal with the matter with an 'iron hand' and said he ensure the police acted on crimes which affected society.
"It is important to crack down on crimes by so called VIPs which shake faith of common people," Parrikar said.
Tehelka cannot say it will not cooperate. The FIR has already been filed, he said.
2:00 pm: Tarun Tejpal issues statement, promises to cooperate
In his first response since the controversy began, Tehelka former editor in chief has issued a statement:
There have been serious allegations cast on me in this last week, and unfortunately as sometimes happens in life, the complete truth and the need to do the honorable thing can come into conflict. In this case this anguish was accentuated by the fact that very many intimate people, professional and personal, were involved.
For four days, as demanded by Shoma Chaudhury, the managing editor, and the recipient of the complaint, I have tried to do what was honorably demanded of me. On Tuesday I issued an apology for the alleged misconduct, as desired by the journalist through Shoma Chaudhury.
On Wednesday I stepped down from the editorship of Tehelka and removed myself from the office premises. On Thursday I learnt of the formation of the complaints committee.
I offer my fullest cooperation to the police and all other authorities, and look to presenting all the facts of this incident to it. I also urge the committee and the police to obtain, examine and release the cctv footage so that the accurate version of events stands clearly revealed.
Tarun J Tejpal
2:00 pm: DGP says case of rape filed against Tejpal
Speaking to Times Now, Goa DGP Kishan Kumar said that the case against Tarun Tejpal is under sections of law pertaining to rape and outraging the modesty of a woman.
1:58 pm: Will arrest Tejpal if he doesn't co-operate, says DGP
Goa Police DGP Kishan Kumar said that they had filed an FIR against the former editor-in-chief of the magazine and they would arrest Tejpal if he did not co-operate.
The seniormost official in Goa Police said that they would expect Tarun Tejpal to co-operate with the probe but if he didn't they could arrest him.
"We can't tell you further details of investigations," Kumar told CNN-IBN.
1:50 pm: Goa Police files case of attempt to rape against Tejpal
The Goa Police has registered an FIR against Tehelka editor Tarun Tejpal, reports CNN-IBN.
The police has registered a case under sections of law for attempting to rape a woman and outraging the modesty of a woman, the channel reported.
The Goa Police had already collected CCTV footage from the hotel in which the incident allegedly took place and had earlier been instructed by the National Commission for Women to file an FIR.
1. 11pm: Won't cooperate with Goa police unless victim files complaint, says Chaudhry
Even as the Goa police has said that it is investigating the CCTV footage from the hotel in which the incident of sexual assault concerning Tehelka managing editor Tarun Tejpal and a young woman journalist is believed to have taken place, Managing editor Shoma Chaudhry has said she will not cooperate with the probe.
Speaking to CNN-IBN earlier, Chaudhry said that there was no reason for her to cooperate with the probe if the victim herself had not made a complaint to the police.
"As a woman, as a feminist, I believe that she get to decide what to do next as this is her body", Chaudhry told the channnel.
Earlier DIG Panaji, OP Mishra said that a preliminary inquiry has begun, and confirmed that they had asked Shoma Chaudhary to give the statements and documents given to her by the victim.
Meanwhile Times Now reported that the Ministry of Home Affairs has sought a report from the Goa Home Department on the case.
12.09 pm: Tejpal sexual assault does not concern Tehelka, says Chaudhry
Speaking to CNN-IBN, Tehelka managing editor Shoma Chaudhry has said that the incident did not impact Tehelka as an institution. He said that he acted as an individual, and after his decision to step down, the institution stood outside of him.
She refused to engage or accept with the premise that the incident was tantamount to an abuse of power on the part of Tejpal, and reacted angrily to suggestions that Tehelka was not holding itself to the same standard that it held everyone else accountable to.
She also claimed that Tehelka was being subjected to a trial by media, likening the situation to 'what had happened to the Talwar's' in the Aarushi case, prompting Rajdeep Sardesai to ask if Tehelka was projecting itself as the victim here.
Chaudhry, insisting that her remarks were being misinterpreted, kept reiterating that the panel would look at both 'versions' of the incident, and come to a conclusion that the organisation would abide by.
She added that it was the prerogative of the woman journalist concerned to decide whether or not to take the complaint of sexual assault further, saying that it was her body and it was her decision to go to the police or not.
11.59 am: Tehelka does not have double standards, insists Chaudhry
Directly confronted about whether or not Tehelka's response to the case of sexual assault was a case of double standards, Managing editor Shoma Chaudhry denied that this was the case.
Speaking to CNN-IBN, she said that in four days she had constituted an internal panel committee, had made Tejpal resign, and apologise.
11.49 am: Tejpal had a different version of events, says Shoma Chaudhry
Noting that she was 'devastated' by the account of a woman journalist who said she had been sexually assaulted by Tehelka editor Tarun Tejpal, Managing editor Shoma Chaudhry said Tejpal had a different version of what had happened.
Speaking to CNN-IBN, Chaudhry refused to divulge Tejpal's version of events, saying that she had already overridden it. She also denied that Tejpal stepping down was little more than a cover up.
She also defended a decision to constitute an internal probe, and said she had sought to redress the situation as quickly as possible. "I was driven by the sense by that she wanted an institutional response and I was working towards getting that", she said.
She also dismissed that the incident was a 'criminal case', saying that the woman journalist concerned had not filed a police complaint.
11.15 am: Goa police examining CCTV footage
The Goa police has said that it has received the CCTV footage from the hotel, in which the sexual assault of a female journalist by Tarun Tejpal took place and are examining it.
11.00 am: Tarun Tejpal is not running away, says Chaudhry
Tehelka Managing editor Shoma Chaudhry has said that Tarun Tejpal is not 'running away' from the sexual assault charges levelled against him, adding that he would fully cooperate with the internal panel to set up to investigate the incident.
Chaudhry also pleaded for 'more time to do the right thing', adding that ever since the letters had been leaked, she had been working in real time, and had not had a chance to do right by the victim. She also asked that the media wait for the findings of the committee.
She reiterated that her sole focus had been on the victim thus far, which had not let her 'do right' by the institution.
10.56 am: Shoma Chaudhry denies Tehelka 'delayed' action on sexual assault
Tehelka editor Shoma Chaudhry has dismissed allegations that there had been a delay in Tehelka addressing the charge of sexual assault directed at editor Tarun Tejpal, saying that within three days, she had made Tejpal apologise, that he had stepped down, and she had constituted a committee of inquiry.
Speaking to media outside the Tehelka office in New Delhi, Chaudhry added that she had no idea that the young journalist was 'disappointed' with Tehelka's response, saying that she had only heard as much through television channels. She added that the journalist concerned had only asked for an unconditional apology, which she had received. Chaudhry added that when the journalist had seen Tejpal's letter she had 'agreed that he seemed genuinely sorry'.
Chaudhry added that she had overridden Tarun Tejpal's contention that the incident between him and a female journalist had been consensual, and had confronted him angrily the moment she had received the complaint from the concerned female journalist that she had been sexually assaulted.
"Because my sole focus was on her, I sent out the letter to everyone, forgetting that it was the first time that this was going public. I was so focused on her, that I should have realised that it could have been leaked", she added. She also said that she didn't realise that the tone of Tejpal's letter could be construed as being vain, considering that it was a letter he had written to her.
10.00 am: NCW to file FIR with Goa police
The National Commission for Women have written to the Goa police and instructed them to file an FIR in connection with the Tarun Tejpal sexual assault case. The NCW has also expressed its shock at the manner in which the matter has been handled by the Tehelka management.
9:10 am: Goa police seek emails from Tehelka staffer
A report from Mayabhushan Nagvenkar in Goa states that the state police has already procured a copy of the victim's emailed letter to Tehelka's managing editor Shoma Chaudhury, as well as some other key intra-office communications.
As he reports the Congress and BJP are currently sparring over what action will be taken against the Tehelka editor-in-chief.
End of updates for November 21
9.45 pm: Tehelka constitutes sexual harassment complaint panel
The Tehelka administration has finally constituted a sexual harassment complaint panel to probe the charges of sexual assault against its editor in chief Tarun Tejpal.
The panel will be headed by noted women's rights activist Urvashi Butalia as well as other prominent leaders in the field.
Below is the full statement issued by Managing Editor Shoma Chaudhury:
In furtherance to Tehelka's acceptance of Tarun Tejpal's recusal from editorship of Tehelka on November 20th, which followed the official unconditional apology he had mailed to the journalist concerned on November 19th, Tehelka has now constituted a formal complaints committee, in accordance to Vishaka guidelines, to be presided over by Urvashi Butalia, eminent feminist and publisher, to investigate the matter. The other members of the committee will be announced shortly.
In addition to this, Tehelka will ensure setting up a formal complaints committee, according to section 4 of the Sexual Harassment of Women (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal Act, 2013), an institutional mechanism that was sorely missing in Tehelka.
7.30 pm: Editors Guild condemns incident, says there must be no cover up
Meanwhile, the Editor's Guild of India has condemned the incident and said no attempt must be made to cover up or play down the extremely serious incident.
Following is the full text of the statement:
The allegations of grave sexual assault made by a journalist of Tehelka against the magazine's editor Tarun Tejpal, are on the face of it shocking and shameful. Such incidents anywhere are condemnable in the strongest terms but the Guild is particularly saddened that they should engulf a media organisation. It is emphatically the philosophy of the Guild that the media that is in the business of holding public persons accountable should itself be held to the highest standards of conduct and decency. The conduct that has been alleged would constitute grave sexual assault at the very least taking advantage of the authority and power of the perpetrator within the media organisation. It also brings out vulnerability of young women journalists who need to be protected and free to pursue their careers without the fear of being subjected to such assaults.
There ought not to be any attempt to cover up or play down this extremely serious incident. Self-proclaimed atonement and recusal for a period are hardly the remedies for what the allegations show to be outright criminality. The full force of the law must be brought into its investigation and prosecution. Due regard must be paid to the sensitivity and privacy of the victim who has already been put to grievous suffering.
7.23 pm: Vice President Ansari puts Tejpal's withdraws Tejpal's name from Prasar Bharti board
The Vice President of India Hamid Ansari has decided to put on hold former Editor-in-chief of Tehelka Tarun Tejpal's name from the list of recommended journalists to be a part of the Prasar Bharti board.
The committee that recommends names includes the PCI chief Markandey Katju and a member of the Information and Broadcasting Ministry besides Ansari.
6.44 pm: Goa Police procures CCTV footage from hotel
Goa Police have confirmed to Times Now that they are in possession of CCTV footage from the hotel where the incident took place.
The police have also written to the Managing Editor Shoma Chaudhury asking for details of the ThinkFest event that concluded earlier this month.
5:05 pm: Have asked if FIR possible, says Goa CM
Goa Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar has said that he has sought a preliminary enquiry into the matter and would await the findings of the police.
"High profile cases need high profile action," Parrikar said.
"We will wait for the report, once we get it, we will consider further action... tht is the status as of now," Parrikar told reporters in his office.
He further said that a preliminary inquiry does not require a complaint from the victim, saying if the criminal offence took place in the jurisdiction of Goa then the government is required to investigate irrespective of whether there is a complaint or not.
Parrikar further added that the Goa Commission for Women could take up the case suo moto.
4:45 pm: Tehelka editor says that committee will be formed today, still an internal matter
Managing editor Shoma Chadhury said that she was setting up a committee and it would be completed by the evening.
"I am being driven by what the aggrieved journalist wants, please let me address her concerns first," she said.
"An apology has been given and the editor has resigned. Are these not actions? What more do you want?" the editor said.
Chaudhury has said that the management of the magazine had met all the demands of the aggrieved journalist and if she was upset about it her priority would be to deal with her concerns.
She also said that it was still an internal matter and would have remained one until the emails were leaked to the media.
"It is not a case. The aggrieved party sent me a mail. She wanted action and it has been taken... It is an internal matter," Chaudhury said.
3:30 pm: Network of Women in Media protests incident, seeks action
An organisation representing women in the media has also protested against the incident and has demanded that the magazine assist the victim in initiating criminal proceedings and action under the sexual harassment act.
"At the same time we think it is important for the media to refrain from circulating details that could reveal the survivor's identity and/or are merely titillating and do not serve any public purpose," The Network for Women in India said in its statement.
2.57: Goa Police to summon Tarun Tejpal for questioning
Sources in the Goa Police have told Times Now that they will summon Tarun Tejpal to Goa for questioning as early as this evening or tomorrow.
Earlier today, Goa CM Manohar Parrikar said the government was taking suo moto action in the case and has asked the hotel to hand over CCTV footage of the incident.
2:42 pm: Delhi Union of Journalists condemns incident
The Delhi Union of Journalists has also condemned the incident and said that no journalist found guilty of sexual harassment should be let off.
2:30 pm: Shoma Chaudhary seeks more time to respond
Under fire managing editor of Tehelka Shoma Chaudhury has requested that the media give her more time to act on the complaint and said she would address all the questions on the matter.
"I wont respond to the question at this point. I need more time," she told reporters outside the Tehelka office in Delhi
"I want to address the issues that have been raised.. I understand the need for transparency. Please give me the time to respond to it," she said.
"The way these letters have leaked I have not been able to act in a matter that I would like to," the editor said.
Chaudhury has been under for allegedly playing down the incident and said that despite the seriousness of the incident there was no need to take action hastily.
"I am not a fugitive. Tejpal is not a fugitive. The institution is not a fugitive. A grievous incident has taken place," she said.
Chaudhury also said that she was in touch with the victim and was "not mad to say things without being in touch with her".
She did not rule out the possibility that she would hold a press conference later.
2:10 pm: Should Tehelka managing editor face action for ignoring victim
https://twitter.com/raju/status/403438168206475264
2:05 pm: Essential that Tehelka does the right thing, says Vardrajan
Former editor-in-chief of The Hindu Siddharth Vardrajan said that it was important that Tehelka took the appropriate steps to ensure the victim in this case received justice.
"You can't be outraged about what is happening within society unless we have safe working environments for women," the senior journalist told CNN-IBN.
He said it was matter that concerned law, society and it was important that Tehelka did the right thing.
2:00 pm: I&B Minister says they will comment later
Minister for Information and Broadcasting Manish Tewari has refused to comment on the issue.
"This is a very sensitive issue. We will look into the matter and then comment," he said.
1:45 pm: Goa Chief Minister Parrikar says they will take action
Speaking to Times Now, Goa Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar said that he has been in touch with the police that has now identified the hotel in which the conference the victim referred to was held.
"We will take action," Parrikar said.
1:40 pm: AIPWA chief says victim wants to file case with police
Kavitha Krishnan, who heads the All India Progressive Women's Association (AIPWA) said that she was in touch with the victim in this case and she has every intention about taking the matter to the police.
The victim wanted a sexual harassment cell set up in the magazine as well and was seeking more action against Tejpal than what has been done so far, Krishanan said.
"The apology is not really an apology... The complainant is not asking for penance but proper process," Krishnan told CNN-IBN.
The magazine should form a inquiry committee to look in to the matter, she said.
1:20 pm: BJP draws parallels with snooping scandal and Tehelka scandal
The BJP has decided to go after the Congress and Tehelka over the issue of Tarun Tejpal's decision to recuse himself as editor-in-chief.
"Do they have such a committee on board? Has such an incident taken place in the past?" BJP spokesperson Meenakshi Lekhi said.
She pointed that Managing Editor Shoma Chaudhary had been protesting rape laws and crimes against women
"Some sort of cover up seems to be underway. If the girl has shown the gumption to come out in public we should stand by her," she said.
"I am on purpose trying to draw a parallel between two women. One women is seeking anonymity and it is being violated," she said.
Lekhi accused media persons of covering acts of criminality and said all groups needed to work together to ensure justice is delivered to all women. She also accused the Congress and its surrogates of double standards.
"Here when a woman is undergoing all this no help is coming," Lekhi said.
"A private issue should not be sensationalised and a sensational issue should not be covered up," she said.
She accused the media of running a 'malicious campaign' against the woman who was seeking privacy in the snooping scandal in Gujarat and even claimed some memos from the Tehelka office had gone missing.
1:00 pm: Goa cops seek CCTV footage from hotel where conference was held
CNN-IBN reports that the Goa police is seeking CCTV footage from the hotel in which the alleged incidents of sexual assault took place.
This comes despite the woman not filing a complaint with the police in the matter.
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As reported earlier, in the event of physical abuse the police can take suo motu cognisance of it and file a complaint based on evidence like CCTV footage.
AFP12:30 pm: Woman reiterates that she is unsatisfied with management's response
Times Now quoted the woman as saying that despite the Managing Editor's claim that she was satisfied with the action taken so far, she was not.
"I am disappointed with the response," she told the news channel.
She also reportedly said that others in the magazine were equally unhappy with the action taken by the publication against its editor-in-chief.
12:00 pm: Outrage against Tehelka's action against Tejpal
Many have already begun to question whether the action taken against Tejpal is inadequate.
What has sparked further outrage is a statement by Chaudhary that the magazine won't be instituting an inquiry into the matter and said it was "an internal problem".
Some like Javed Akhtar, who came to Tejpal's defence, were also roundly chastised. Andalmost all on Twitter sought further action against Tejpal, with his name and that of the managing editor's both trending on the micro-blogging site.
Even within the journalistic fraternity, on and off Twitter, most backed stronger action against Tejpal.
Some like CNN-IBN's National Affairs Editor Bhupendra Chaubey were stinging in their criticism of the action taken against Tejpal so far and questioned why the organisation wasn't taking further action against him or why a body like the National Commission for Women didn't take action against him.
However, practising Supreme Court lawyer Sanjay Hegde said that if the abuse faced by the woman was verbal then it was indeed an internal matter and a committee in Tehelka could decide the action against Tejpal.
An internal committee within Tehelka was adequate to decide whether his recusing himself as editor in chief was adequate, Hegde said.
"If there was any physical attack, then irrespective of whether the victim complains or not if there is evidence like video recordings, it can be enough for filing of a criminal complaint," Hegde told CNN-IBN.
The woman in her complaint had said that the assault had taken place in an hotel elevator in Goa and according to Hegde, a case could be registered in Goa.
Despite the sea of outrage over the incident, Tejpal has maintained a stony silence and apart from Chaudhary's statement claiming it to be an internal matter, Tehelka has said nothing else. Unfortunately, silence and obfuscation will not help.