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NEW DELHI: Rape accused Tehelka editor Tarun Tejpal will be a fast-track court headed by a woman judge in Goa.
Goa chief minister Manohar Parrikar said here, “I will see to it that justice is given to the girl….Tejpal will be tried in a fast track court. We will follow the Supreme Court and have a female judge in this case.
The BJP chief minister said Tejpal’s background will have no bearing on the trial.
The proposed fast-track court may dispose of the case in five to six months. The chief minister said a charge-sheet against Tejpal will be filed within 45 days.
Tejpal, who was arrested last Saturday for alleged sexual assault on a junior colleague in the elevator of a Panaji hotel on Nov 7 and 8 during the magazine’s `Thinkfest,’ is in six-day police custody.
Police have recorded statements of Tejpal during rounds of interrogation led by woman investigating officer Sunita Sawant.
According to police, Tejpal has corroborated the girl’s complaint but insists that it was “consensual.’’
Investigators said police would seek extension of his remand. Police have also issued summons to former Tehelka managing editor Choudhury, who quit last week, and three journalists to record their statements.
Meanwhile, Tejpal, who has already undergone two rounds of medical tests, will be subjected another round at the Goa Medical College and the Institute of Psychiatry and Human Behaviour in Panaji.
The alacrity with which the BJP government in Goa is taking interest in the case could be explained by the fact that Tehelka had brought former BJP president Bangaru Laxman by catching him accepting bribe in a presumed defence deal sting operation in 2001.
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