SC reserves order on Tarun Tejpal's plea

New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Tuesday reserved its order on journalist Tarun Tejpal plea seeking to set aside the charges of sexual assault framed against him by a trial court.

A bench headed by Justice Arun Mishra reserved the order but asked Tejpal why he apologized to his former colleague if he claims that the sexual assault charges were not true.

Tejpal''s lawyer said that the allegations of rape against the senior journalist were false and without any basis. But the bench sought to know why Tejpal sent the letter of apology to the woman.

Tejpal''s counsel and senior lawyer Vikas Singh cited the CCTV footages of the hotel lobby and argued that it was the complainant who could be seen running after him and that she was the one who started everything.

Tejpal has moved the top court challenging a trial court order which had framed the charges dealing with rape and wrongful confinement against him. He has pleaded not guilty and claimed his innocence in the case. A former junior woman colleague accused Tejpal of rape during ThinkFest, a conference organised by the Tehelka founder in Goa in 2013.