Delhi court takes cognisance of charge sheet against NewsClick founder Prabir Purkayastha

A Delhi court on Tuesday took cognisance of a charge sheet filed against NewsClick founder and Editor-in-Chief Prabir Purkayastha under anti-terror law UAPA in a case based on allegations that the news portal received money to spread pro-China propaganda. Additional Sessions Judge Hardeep Kaur said there was sufficient evidence against the accused in the case and directed the prosecution to supply a copy of the charge sheet to Purkayastha. The judge fixed May 31 for arguments on framing of charges in the matter. The court had in January allowed NewsClick HR Head Amit Chakravarty to turn approver in the case.

The judge had pardoned Chakravarty, arrested in the case, on his application that claimed he had material information which he was willing to disclose to Delhi police, which is investigating the matter. The Special Cell of Delhi Police had arrested Chakravarty and Purkayastha on October 3 last year. They are currently in judicial custody. According to the FIR, a large amount of funds to the news portal allegedly came from China to "disrupt the sovereignty of India" and cause disaffection against the country.

It also alleged Purkayastha conspired 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 that surfaced in the analysis of data, police said. Around 300 electronic gadgets were also seized from the offices of NewsClick and the residences of the journalists who were examined. Following the raids, 46 individuals, including nine female journalists, were questioned by the Special Cell.