The Editors Guild of India on Thursday condemned allegations of sexual assault against editor of Tehelka magazine Tarun Tejpal, terming it as shocking and shameful.
In its statement it said that the allegations of grave sexual assault made by a journalist of Tehelka against Tejpal, are shocking and shameful.
“Such incidents anywhere are condemnable in the strongest terms but the Guild is particularly saddened that they should engulf a media organisation. It is emphatically the philosophy of the Guild that the media that is in the business of holding public persons accountable should itself be held to the highest standards of conduct and decency,” it said.
The statement further said that the conduct that has been alleged would constitute grave sexual assault at the very least taking advantage of the authority and power of the perpetrator within the media organisation.
“It also brings out vulnerability of young women journalists who need to be protected and free to pursue their careers without the fear of being subjected to such assaults,” it added.
It further warned that no attempts should be made to cover up or play down this extremely serious incident, and added that stepping down from the job for six months is not a remedy for such a grievous incident.
“Self proclaimed atonement and recusal for a period are hardly the remedies for what the allegations show to be outright criminality. The full force of the law must be brought into its investigation and prosecution. Due regard must be paid to the sensitivity and privacy of the victim who has already been put to grievous suffering,” it added.
Tejpal, on Wednesday, sent a letter to Shoma Chaudhary, saying that he was stepping aside from his job for six months, and was squarely to be blamed for the sexual misconduct incident.
Tejpal further said that it was a bad lapse of judgement on his part, and that he had completely misread the situation.
He said that he has apologised unconditionally to the concerned journalist, but felt that he needed to atone for his misconduct further.
Tejpal, who is a founder member of the Tehelka magazine, said that he was stepping aside as an act of penance.
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