Delhi Police secures all sanctions for prosecution in NewsClick case: Court informed

New Delhi, April 16 (IANS) – The Delhi Police has obtained all necessary sanctions for the prosecution of the accused in the NewsClick case. The news portal is accused of spreading pro-China propaganda in exchange for money.

The Special Public Prosecutor mentioned that sanction orders under UAPA and CrPC have been secured, to be filed in the form of supplementary chargesheets. The court deferred the matter for April 30 to decide on taking cognisance of the charge sheet.

The first charge sheet against NewsClick Founder and Editor-in-Chief Prabir Purkayastha has been filed by the Special Cell of Delhi Police. Purkayastha is accused of accepting foreign funds to destabilise the country. PPK Newsclick Studio Pvt Ltd has also been named as an accused in the case.

The judicial custody of Prabir Purkayastha and Amit Chakravarty has been extended. Chakravarty has been granted permission to become an approver in the case, claiming to possess material information that he is willing to disclose to the Delhi Police.

Official sources revealed that the charge sheet contains information on 480 electronic devices confiscated during the probe. Purkayastha is identified as the primary suspect, while Chakravarty has been granted the role of a witness in the case. The allegations involve accepting funds to disrupt the stability of the nation and influence the 2019 Lok Sabha elections.

The FIR filed by the Delhi Police alleges that substantial sums of money were transferred clandestinely from China to NewsClick. This fund was utilized to publish paid news articles criticizing India’s policies while endorsing Chinese government initiatives. The news portal is said to have received around Rs 38 crore in foreign funding.