After his awkwardly worded bail plea (“the victim was an educated modern woman”) failed and the legal pincer tightens inexorably, Tarun Tejpal, founder-editor of Tehelka, is seeking to project himself as a victim of a “Right Wing political conspiracy” as Goa, where he is being tried for rape, sexual harassment and outraging the modesty of a woman, is ruled by the BJP. The ruse cuts little ice because the successive incidents happened at his own THiNK festival and the victim was his junior colleague, and not a member of the general public who could be alleged to have been ‘planted’ by a political entity. It also overlooks the fact that besides the victim, five senior colleagues later quit the magazine in protest, while managing editor Shoma Choudhary was forced to step down.
From the time his young victim reported the incidents to her friends, colleagues, and boss Shoma Choudhary, and Tejpal incriminated himself with SMSes and emails which became public and set the law on him, his friends and admirers have launched a sustained media campaign on his behalf. The victim and her mother have mainly been silent; activists have spoken up in their defence when asked to comment on specific allegations, but the Tejpal camp is on the offensive.
On February 19, 2014, CNN-IBN conducted a programme on whether Tarun Tejpal has a valid case to project himself as a victim, where a friend tried to read meaning into the denial of bail despite 81 days in jail. He was rebuffed by women’s activists who pointed out that bail is generally refused in criminal cases.
Some prominent persons languishing in jail for years without bail, sometimes without a even chargesheet, include Sadhvi Pragya, Swami Aseemanand and Col Prasad Shrikant Purohit, alleged Hindu terrorists against whom the Government has failed to make a viable case. On the other hand, actor Sanjay Dutt who has been convicted in a case concerning the Mumbai serial blasts of 1993 manages generous doses of consecutive bail.
The public defence of Tarun Tejpal is important because it is driven by political and ideological considerations, and after a brief lull, has picked up as the trial is due to begin. Prima facie, there seems enough evidence to nail him under the new rape law, brought about after the horrific December 2012 gang-rape in Delhi, in which the victim died later. During the course of the investigation, the victim complained of attempts to intimidate her mother and the investigating officer also complained of attempts to intimidate her.
Tarun Tejpal’s friends, who cannot overcome the uncomfortable fact that his apology amounts to admission of some unwelcome acts on November 7 and 8, 2013, are trying to whip up public sentiment against the ‘draconian’ features of the new law in order to have it toned down. Eminent journalist BG Verghese threw his weight behind Tarun Tejpal in an article in The Indian Express (December 3, 2013), “What we have seen over the past two weeks in the Tehelka matter has been a gotcha trial by media that has been judgemental, sanctimonious and taunting about Tarun Tejpal, the owner-editor, and Shoma Choudhury, former managing editor of the journal… savagely hounded until she resigned”.
Verghese lambasted the “witch-hunt” and “pinch of malice” in the media coverage in which Tarun Tejpal was “pilloried as a monster, an egotistical power-seeker, a poor paymaster though a secret tycoon-in-the-making, and a political and social climber. His journalism has been questioned by some as immoral, magisterial and politically motivated muck-raking by entrapment rather than investigation”.
Verghese sympathised with Shoma Choudhury, “A highly talented, honoured and honourable journalist” who mistakenly believed that Tarun Tejpal’s token apology and chosen ‘penance’ was acceptable to the victim. Faced with a public furore, she said there were “two versions”, and was harassed into quitting. As for Tarun Tejpal, Verghese feels that he “awarded himself no small punishment that would have in any case brought his ‘indiscretion’ into the glare of publicity. He erred, but stood up to face the consequences of his actions… His subsequent defence in the face of the media onslaught and political efforts to arraign him is understandable. The demise of Tehelka too would be a real media loss”.
The veteran journalist alleges political bias, “The Goa police and BJP chief minister, Manohar Parrikar, both exhibited a rare zeal not noticed before. BJP spokesmen, long chafing over Tehelka’s exposure of the defence purchase scam (Operation West End), Gujarat 2002 and other matters, gleefully grabbed the opportunity for revenge”. Acknowledging that feminists and criminologists are opposed to softening the amended rape law, he points out that as the law proceeds, the victim will face cross-examination regarding the alleged ‘two versions’, and points out that this law also provides for conciliation at the request of the woman, which is “probably what Shoma had intended in order to avoid further trauma”. He concludes with the advice that, “the media and political leaders would do well to spend time in honest introspection”, but does not explain what they need to introspect about.
Now, as the trial nears, a tirade against the victim has been launched by Nirupama Sekhri, a school teacher in Kodikanal, on newslaundry.com. Sarcastically titled, “Letter To Ms Tehelka-Assault-Victim” (February 14, 2014), it states, “Now that the melee around your case has cooled,… this may be the right time to open up the case again to some questions – this time directed at you”.
Dogmatically asserting that, “I do not see you as a victim”, she denies affinity with Tarun Tejpal because, “he in all his wisdom chose to hire you – and chose to travel with you in that lift”. There follows a prolonged explanation of how Tarun Tejpal is now the victim because his reputation has been ripped apart before the veracity of the allegations have been established. Like a rampaging defence attorney, Sekhri challenges the veracity of each statement made by the victim that has come into the public domain, in a sense presenting the “two versions” hinted at by Shoma Choudhury and BG Verghese. In language reminiscent of Tejpal’s bail plea, she says, “Why did it take a savvy girl like you so long to make an official record of the violation?” Wild denunciation of the victim follows.
Journalist Revati Laul, who quit Tehelka in November 2013 when the rape charges surfaced, responded (February 15) and pointed out that the victim was now out of work and money, “with a big fat court case to fight”. Countering Sekhri’s questions, she asked her to explain, “Why did Mr Tejpal admit to committing acts against the will of my friend, if he did not do them against her will? Why did he “recuse” himself from his post?” Above all, “Why was a second version trotted out only days after the police took cognisance of the facts and lodged an FIR?”
With just days to go before the trial begins, it would seem that there are cracks among the leftist feminists regarding the ‘draconian’ new law, now that it has ensnared one of their leading lights. It adds to their misery that Goa was under BJP rule at the time of the THiNK festival, and that Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar had the political wisdom to let the law take its course rather than vitiate the investigation by activism in the matter. This has left the ‘Save Tejpal’ brigade with no ground to allege mala fide. That is why lawyer-activist Vrinda Grover, who was the first to allege ‘over drive’ on television, has retreated on this score and now asserts that the crime of which the former editor is accused is ‘draconian’, and not the law.
Niticentral.com, 22 February 2014
http://www.niticentral.com/2014/02/22/tarun-tejpal-and-the-alchemy-of-denial-192617.html