The BJP on Monday (August 10, 2026) questioned the Congress's silence over former Tehelka editor-in-chief Tarun Tejpal's conviction in a 2013 rape case, alleging that the opposition party has a longstanding "nexus" with the magazine.

The Bombay High Court convicted Tejpal in the 2013 rape case on Thursday (August 6) and sentenced him to 10 years' rigorous imprisonment, terming the trial court's 2021 acquittal verdict "perverse" and criticising it for falling prey to the notion that the complainant in such cases should be a "perfect victim" and should conduct herself in a certain way to appear credible.

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Tejpal, 63, was convicted of raping a junior colleague in a hotel elevator in 2013 during an event organised by Tehelka in Goa. He has said he will approach the Supreme Court to challenge the conviction.

Bharatiya Janata Party's (BJP) national spokesperson Sudhanshu Trivedi said the Congress's silence despite the conviction shows that its approach to freedom of expression and women's rights is "one-sided, partisan and prejudiced".

"This issue is important today because even after so many days, not a single word has been heard from the Congress," Mr. Trivedi told a press conference at the BJP headquarters in New Delhi.

He alleged that the relationship between Tejpal and the Congress is nearly two decades old and questioned the party's failure to react to his conviction.

"If there was no relationship between him and the Congress, the Congress could have said it is its right to comment or not to comment. But the love and understanding between them, which has continued for the last 20 years, is visible from 2003, 2004, 2006, 2011 and 2021. If they are still not reacting to this, its relevance today is that it shows what kind of conspiracies they used to hatch to topple a nationalist government and damage its reputation," Mr. Trivedi said.

He accused the Congress of using people associated with the media to target governments led by the BJP and claimed that the "tendency" has not changed.

"The nefarious design and the conspicuous conspiracies that the Congress used to hatch with their henchmen masqueraded as free media is now being blatantly exposed," he said.

Mr. Trivedi also referred to Tejpal's statement after his acquittal by a lower court in 2021, claiming that he had thanked the Congress for helping him in the rape case. He said Tejpal had thanked the Congress after the lower court acquitted him and the high court later overturned the verdict.

Mr. Trivedi also cited a series of instances involving the Congress and the former editor.

He said the Atal Bihari Vajpayee government had formed an inquiry commission headed by Justice Phukan following a Tehelka sting operation in 2001, but the group that had conducted the sting had refused to provide all the tapes for verification.

"When Atalji's government constituted an inquiry commission headed by Justice Phukan, the sting operation group refused to provide all the tapes for verification," Mr. Trivedi said.

He alleged that after the government changed, the Congress regime did not table the inquiry report in Parliament and that only a 41-page summary was placed before the House following the BJP's repeated demands.

Mr. Trivedi then cited a letter purportedly written by then Congress president Sonia Gandhi to then Finance Minister P. Chidambaram in 2004, alleging that she had sought that Tehelka and its financiers should not face harassment or "unfair treatment".

Mr. Trivedi further claimed that the then Law Minister, M. Veerappa Moily, gave Tejpal an award for excellence in journalism in 2010, while Congress leader Digvijaya Singh said in 2013 that Tejpal had done "excellent work" in fighting against "communal forces".

On the ongoing students' protests in Jharkhand, Mr. Trivedi accused the Congress and Rahul Gandhi of adopting a "double standard" on students' issues.

"They are struggling in a restrained manner. They are struggling in a disciplined manner. There is no abusive language, there is no foul language being used there.”

"Nor are they being provided high-quality food ordered from unknown sources from places such as Swiggy and Zomato. Nor is there a picnic-like atmosphere there," he said.

The BJP leader stressed that the issue is not limited to alleged paper leaks but concerns jobs and alleged irregularities in recruitment.

He questioned Mr. Gandhi's silence on the protests in Ranchi, contrasting it with his earlier interventions in student agitations in other parts of the country.

"Rahul Gandhi cannot hear the voice of the students of Ranchi. Those who used to roar and shout from Kota to Prayagraj are not even seen making a noise in Ranchi. This shows that their objective is not to speak for the interests of students but to fulfil their political interests," Mr. Trivedi said.

Published - August 10, 2026 05:55 pm IST