SC grants Tarun Tejpal 3 week bail to attend mother's funeral

The Supreme Court today granted Tehelka editor-in-chief, Tarun Tejpal accused of raping an employee last year, interim bail to attend his mother’s funeral. Tejpal’s mother Shakunatala was 87 years old and died last evening in their Goa house. Tejpal’s lawyers moved the Supreme Court seeking bail for Tejpal to perform the final rites. The court granted him interim bail for three weeks to perform the funeral as well as all subsequent rituals. [caption id=“attachment_1532155” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] Tarun Tejpal on the morning of his arrest in November last year. Reuters[/caption] The court had in the past twice granted permission to Tejpal to meet his ailing mother, once in the hospital at Mapusa town and the second time at his residence in Goa. Arrested on 30 November last year, Tejpal has been lodged in Sada sub-jail in Vasco, Goa. A junior woman colleague accused Tejpal of raping her during ThinkFest, a high profile conference organised by the Tehelka founder in Goa which was attended by Hollywood star Robert de Niro. The victim claimed that she was sexually assaulted twice on 7 and 8 November.