Tehelka editor Tarun Tejpal accused of sexual assault; steps aside

The senior editor faces allegations of misconduct by a colleague.

Tarun Tejpal, editor of investigative magazine, Tehelka has decided to temporarily step down from his role after allegations of misconduct against him by a colleague.

Tejpal will be stepping down for six months, while Shoma Chaudhary, managing editor at Tehelka, will take charge at the helm.

“There has been an untoward incident and though he has extended an unconditional apology to the colleague involved, Tarun will be recusing himself as the editor of Tehelka for the next six months,” Chaudhary wrote in a mail to her colleagues.

Tehelka has said that the magazine has not instituted an enquiry into the matter. “It is an internal problem and we are not setting up any enquiry into the matter,” Chaudhary told Business Standard.

Meanwhile, Tejpal has in his letter said that he had apologised unconditionally to the journalist concerned. “I squarely take the blame for this. A bad lapse of judgment, an awful misreading of the situation have led to an unfortunate incident that rails against all we believe in and fight for," Tejpal said.

However, a person close to the journalist rejected Tehelka's claim that she is "satisfied with the action taken." She alleged, while speaking to NDTV, that the woman was subjected to "an act of grave sexual misconduct" and said she was "completely shattered and emotionally scarred."

"The act happened continuously over a period of time...and despite the girl pleading that she is almost the age of his daughter...she pleaded 'please don't do this'...Her 'no' was not accepted...it happened once and it happened the next day," the journalist's confidante alleged, NDTV reported.

With inputs from NDTV