New Delhi: A court in Delhi has granted the Delhi Police an additional 10 days to complete their investigation into allegations against NewsClick founder and editor-in-chief Prabir Purkayastha. The case, filed under the anti-terror law UAPA, accuses the news portal of receiving funds to promote pro-China propaganda.
Additional Sessions Judge Hardeep Kaur approved the police's request for more time, stating that the investigation was "at a critical stage." This extension comes after the court had previously granted 60 days on December 22 and an additional 20 days on February 23 for the probe, reported news agency PTI.
Additionally, the judicial custody of Purkayastha and accused-turned-approver Amit Chakravarty was extended by 10 days.
Purkayastha and Chakravarty were arrested by the Special Cell of Delhi Police on October 3. Without court permission, the probe agency would have had three months from the date of arrest to complete the investigation, after which the accused in custody have a statutory right to bail, as per the PTI report.
According to the FIR, a large amount of funds to the news portal came from China to "disrupt the sovereignty of India" and cause disaffection against the country. It also accuses Purkayastha of conspiring with a group, People's Alliance for Democracy and Secularism (PADS), to sabotage the electoral process during the 2019 Lok Sabha polls.
Raids were conducted at 88 locations in Delhi and seven in other states on October 3 against the suspects named in the FIR and those whose names surfaced in the analysis of data, the police said, PTI reported.
The police seized around 300 electronic gadgets from NewsClick offices and the residences of examined journalists. Subsequently, 46 individuals, including nine female journalists, were questioned by the Special Cell.