12:33
Senior Goa Police official and the former investigation officer in the alleged sexual assault case involving Tarun Tejpal, Sunita Sawant on Thursday welcomed the Bombay High Court's decision convicting the former Tehelka editor-in-chief in the 2013 case. Swant stated that the trial court had failed to properly appreciate the evidence and that the High Court rightly set aside the acquittal.
Speaking to reporters outside the court, Sawant said the State had challenged the acquittal because it believed the trial court's order was "perverse".
"We had already challenged the trial court's order because it was definitely a perverse order," she said. "The court has heard arguments on the quantum of sentence and will pronounce the verdict at 2:30 pm. The minimum sentence under Section 376 is 10 years of imprisonment, while the maximum is life imprisonment. Let's wait for the court's order."
Sawant further highlighted that the investigation had been conducted thoroughly and that all evidence gathered during the probe was placed before the court.
"It was a challenging investigation for me as well," Sawant told ANI. "Whatever emerged during the normal course of the investigation was presented before the court. At some point, the trial court lagged behind in appreciating the evidence. Everything was argued before the High Court, which examined the flaws in the trial court's order and accordingly set aside the acquittal."
Meanwhile, Goa Advocate General Devidas Pangam also welcomed the Bombay High Court's decision, calling it a "judgment based on justice and evidence". He added that the ruling brought solace to the survivor after what he termed an erroneous acquittal by the trial court. -- ANI
