Editors Guild, the association of editors of media organisations in the country, has decided to suspend its members accused of sexual molestation. In a statement issued by the Guild, it announced that Tarun Tejpal and M J Akbar have been suspended from the organisation, while a decision on Gautam Adhikari will be taken after receiving the reply to a notice issued to him.
Editors Guild of India has issued a statement. You may also read it here – https://t.co/xrPM0vb2jK pic.twitter.com/UCSktHNKgY
— Editors Guild of India (@IndEditorsGuild) December 12, 2018
During the recent #MeToo movement, several women had levelled charges of sexual harassment against veteran journalist and former minister of state for External Affairs M J Akbar and founder editor of DNA Gautam Adhikari. M J Akbar is at present a dormant member and a former president of the organisation. On the other hand, one woman who had worked in Tarun Tejpal’s media venture Tehelka had accused him of sexual assault on her during an event in Goa in 2013. Subsequently police had registered a case against Tejpal and the case is now being heard by a trial court.
Although Tejpal was accused of sexual assault inside a lift by his colleague five years ago, he continued to be a member of the Editors Guild. Similarly, Akbar and Adhikari also continued as members after the allegations against them surfaced. The fact that people accused of sexual assault continued as Editors Guild members escaped attention for a long time. But last month this fact had come to light and people had started to put pressure on the Guild to take some action on the members. As a result of that, the Guild was finally forced to suspend the members.
