Delhi Police special cell's FIR accused NewsClick journalists of indulging in "continuous unlawful activities" which were aimed at "undermining the unity and territorial integrity of India". In a fresh blow to press freedom, a total of 46 journalists and contributors to the NewsClick were questioned on Tuesday and their mobile phones and other electronic gadgets were seized for alleged connections to China-linked entities to broadcast Chinese propaganda.
The FIR accused NewsClick founder Prabir Purkayastha and his associates Joseph Raj, Anoop Chakraborty (brother of Amit Chakraborty), Bappaditya Sinha (promoter of Virtunet Systems Pvt Ltd.) of siphoning off 'illegally routed foreign funds'. "It is also learnt that aforementioned funds were distributed to Gautam Navlakha, associates of Teesta Seetalwaad namely Javed Anand, Tamara, Jibran, Urmilesh, Aratrika Halder, Paranjoy Guha Thakurta, Trina Shankar, Abhisar Sharma," the FIR stated.
Details of the FIR against NewsClick
Purkayastha and Chakravarty were arrested by the Special Cell of the Delhi Police on Tuesday. On Thursday, a trial court in Delhi directed the city police to provide the duo with a copy of the FIR, citing a 2016 order of the Supreme Court and a 2010 order of the Delhi High Court. The Delhi Police served a copy of the FIR to the portal on Friday.
According to a report by NDTV, the FIR names Prabir Purkayastha, the website's human resources head Amit Chakravarty, and a number of journalists and civil society activists and accuses them of trying "to cause disaffection against India" and "threaten the unity, integrity, (and) security" of the country. The FIR also states that a large amount of funds came from China in order to disrupt India's sovereignty.
The FIR, which was accessed by PTI, alleges that the accused journalists used a “large amount” of Chinese funding to publish “paid news” which criticised the policies of the Indian government and promoted the policies of the Chinese government. "In furtherance of this conspiracy to disrupt the sovereignty of India and cause disaffection against India, a large amount of funds was routed from China in a circuitous and camouflaged manner and paid news were intentionally peddled, criticising domestic policies, development projects of India and promoting, projecting and defending policies and programmes of the Chinese government," the FIR says.
After mentioning the claims against Newsclick, and Singham – the US businessman whose funding of the news portal through open banking channels forms the basis for the police case, the FIR says, "It is further learnt that big Chinese Telecom companies like Xiaomi, Vivo, etc. incorporated thousands of shell companies in India in violation of PMLA/FEMA for illegally infusing foreign funds in India in furtherance of this conspiracy,” according to a report by The Wire.
It also alleges that the founder and editor-in-chief of NewsClick, Prabir Purkayastha, conspired with a group -- People's Alliance for Democracy and Secularism (PADS) -- to sabotage the electoral process during the 2019 Lok Sabha polls.
The police action drew sharp reaction from opposition parties and press bodies which accused the BJP of indulging in a "witch-hunt" against journalists who criticise the government. NewsClick is known for its critical reporting of the government. In the past as well, several Indian media offices including BBC, The Quint, Dainik Bhaskar have been ‘searched’ after they showed signs of dissent against the government.
