NewsClick Case: Delhi HC To Hear Plea Challenging Police Remand, FIR Against Founder And HR Head

The Delhi HC agreed to hear the plea seeking the quashing of FIR and challenging the trial court order granting police the remand of NewsClick founder Prabir Purkayastha and HR head Amit Chakravarty.

The Delhi High Court on Friday agreed to hear the plea seeking the quashing of FIR and challenging the trial court order granting police the remand of NewsClick founder Prabir Purkayastha and HR head Amit Chakravarty for seven days. The matter was mentioned by senior lawyer Kapil Sibal before the bench of the Chief Justice of Delhi High Court Satish Chandra Sharma.

The Special Cell of the Delhi Police conducted raids on various locations, including NewsClick's offices and the homes of its journalists and employees. The statement from NewsClick expressed concern about the seizure of electronic devices without providing seizure memos, hash values of seized data, or copies of the data itself. Furthermore, the statement revealed that NewsClick's office had been sealed, making it impossible for the company to continue reporting.

In response to these actions, NewsClick strongly condemned what it saw as a disregard for journalistic independence and an attempt to silence criticism under the guise of sedition or 'anti-national' propaganda.

Earlier on Wednesday, NewsClick raised concerns over the lack of transparency and due process in recent raids conducted by the Delhi Police at its premises. In a statement issued on Wednesday, NewsClick stated that it had not been provided with a copy of the First Information Report (FIR) or informed about the specific charges filed against individuals associated with the organisation.

Founder and Editor-in-Chief of NewsClick, Prabir Purkayastha, through his legal team, has taken the step of moving Delhi's Patiala House Court to request access to the FIR.

According to the online news portal, it has been under the scrutiny of various central government agencies since 2021, with raids conducted by the Enforcement Directorate, the Delhi Police Economic Offences Wing, and the Income Tax Department. According to NewsClick, these actions have not resulted in formal complaints or charges being filed against the organisation.

NewsClick claimed that it had been charged with violating the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA) for allegedly spreading "Chinese propaganda" on its website. Despite extensive scrutiny of bank statements, invoices, expenses, and funding sources, no formal charges were filed against the organisation, according to the statement.