Zee Media Bureau
Panaji: Tehelka editor-in-chief Tarun Tejpal was on Wednesday sent to 12-day judicial custody by a court here.
Tejpal was presented before the court today after his extended four-day police custody period expired.
The district and sessions court passed the order after police argued that Tejpal should not be released on bail for fear of intimidating the victim and witnesses who have testified against him in the alleged rape case, or for destroying evidence against him.
Tejpal was arrested on November 30 for allegedly raping a junior colleague in a resort in Goa last month.
He was initially remanded to six days in police custody, after which his remand was extended by four more days.
Tejpal has already been booked under Section 354-A (sexual harassment, physical contact, advances involving unwelcome and explicit sexual overtures, or any other unwelcome physical, verbal or non-verbal conduct of sexual nature), 376 (rape) and 376(2)(k) (rape by a person of a woman in his custody taking advantage of his official position) of IPC.
He has also been charged with Section 341 (wrongful restraint) and Section 342 (wrongful confinement) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) last week.
The police have already recorded the statements of the victim, three witnesses and Tehelka`s former managing editor Shoma Chaudhury sworn before a judicial magistrate even as sources said that the investigators had been unable to break Tejpal and extract a confession from him.
Tejpal is alleged to have insisted to his investigators during interrogation that the sexual encounter with the victim was consensual.
(With IANS inputs)
