The Supreme Court on Tuesday directed former Tehelka editor Tarun Tejpal, who was convicted of rape by the Goa High Court, to surrender before the jail authorities within two weeks.

A Bench led by Justice Alok Aradhe rejected Tejpal's plea seeking exemption from surrender and made it clear that his appeal against the High Court's conviction would be taken up only after he surrenders and submits a surrender certificate.

During the hearing, Justice Aradhe asked Senior Advocate Kapil Sibal, appearing for Tejpal, how much time would be required for him to surrender. Sibal sought two weeks, following which the Court recorded the request and directed Tejpal to surrender within that period.

The Court also said that if Tejpal files his surrender certificate on or before September 22, his appeal will be listed for hearing on that date.

The case dates back to 2013, when Tejpal was accused of sexually assaulting a junior colleague twice inside an elevator at a hotel in Goa. The Goa Police subsequently registered an FIR against him under various provisions, including rape.

Tejpal was arrested in November 2013 and remained in custody before being granted bail in July 2014. His trial began in 2017 and continued for nearly four years.

In May 2021, a trial court acquitted Tejpal of all charges. However, the Goa High Court reversed the acquittal on August 6, 2026, convicted him of rape and sentenced him to 10 years' imprisonment along with a fine exceeding ₹10 lakh.

Tejpal has challenged the High Court judgment before the Supreme Court.

The High Court had earlier granted Tejpal four weeks to surrender before the jail authorities while declining to stay his conviction. The extension was granted to enable him to approach the Supreme Court.

During Tuesday's hearing, Sibal argued that the alleged incident took place in 2013 and that Tejpal had remained on bail for most of the period after his initial custody. He submitted that sending Tejpal to jail for a short period before hearing his appeal would serve little purpose and sought exemption from surrender.

Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, appearing for the Goa government, opposed the request. He argued that the High Court had only suspended the operation of its order to enable Tejpal to seek appropriate relief before the Supreme Court and urged the Court to consider the issue of exemption on its merits.

After hearing the submissions, the Supreme Court directed Tejpal to surrender within two weeks and made the filing of the surrender certificate a condition for listing his appeal on September 22.