Inspector Sunita Sawant of the Goa Police Crime Branch on Tuesday filed a complaint in the city police station here that Tehelka editor Tarun Tejpal had threatened her. He is in judicial custody over the sexual assault of a journalist, a case Ms. Sawant is investigating.
On Wednesday, Panaji police registered a non-cognisable offence of criminal intimidation under Section 506 of the Indian Penal Code against Mr. Tejpal.
Mr. Tejpal was interrogated by Ms. Sawant and others between November 30 and December 10 while he was in police custody. He threatened her during the interrogation, the complaint alleged.
Ms. Sawant had mentioned this before the District and Sessions Court during Mr. Tejpal’s bail hearing recently and judge Anuja Prabhudesai had taken note of it in the order dismissing his plea. Mr. Tejpal denied the allegations in a letter to Ms. Sawant and alleged it was part of the “prejudiced investigation” against him.
In a related development, the victim in the sexual assault case has written to the Goa police saying she was being harassed and intimidated by people who revealed her identity by circulating an e-mail with her photo and questioned the validity of her charge. Crime Branch officials said on Thursday evening that the complaint was “in transit.”
