FIR Alleges NewsClick Used Chinese Funds To Disrupt India's Sovereignty; Mentions 2019 Elections, Farmers' Protest

The FIR (First Information Report) against NewsClick founder Prabir Purkayastha, and the human resources head, Amit Chakravarty in Chinese funding case names some journalists and civil society activists like Gautam Navlakha and associates of activist Teesta Setalvad as well.

The FIR identifies Puryakastha, Amit Sengupta, D Raghunandan, Bappaditya Sinha, Navlakha, Chakravarty, and Worldwide Media Holding LLC as shareholders of NewsClick, Hindustan Times reported.

It alleges that Navlakha has been a shareholder in NewsClick since its establishment in 2018, accusing him of engaging in activities that are anti-Indian and unlawful, including "actively supporting" banned naxal (Maoist) organisations.

The FIR notes Navlakha's association with Purkayastha since 1991 and highlights his "anti-national nexus" with Ghulam Nabi Fai. Fai, sentenced to two years in jail in 2012 in the United States for unlawfully working for the Pakistani spy agency Inter-Services Intelligence, is referenced.

The FIR alleges that substantial foreign funds, amounting to crores, were illicitly injected into M/s PPK NewsClick Studio Pvt Ltd by Indian and foreign entities hostile to India to "disrupt the sovereignty and territorial integrity of India."

The funds, allegedly funneled in a circuitous and camouflaged manner from China, were purportedly used for paid news criticising domestic policies and development projects, "to cause disaffection against India" and "threaten the unity, integrity, (and) security" of the country.

"Since April 2018, such fraudulent funds in crores have been received by M/s PPK NewsCLick Studio Pvt Ltd through illegal means during a short span of five years from M/s Worldwide Media Holdings LLC and others..." the FIR states according to NDTV.

The document specifically points to Neville Roy Singham, an American millionaire believed to have close ties to the Chinese government's media apparatus, as the orchestrator of these fraudulent fund infusions. The FIR contends that the funds were intentionally routed from China to support news articles critical of Indian policies.

The FIR mentions endeavors to disrupt supplies and essential services by prolonging the 2020–2021 farmers' protest on the outskirts of Delhi. It accuses the accused of actively promoting and supporting the agitation to harm the Indian economy.

Additionally, the FIR asserts efforts to propagate a negative narrative about the Indian government's actions to contain COVID-19 in the country.

The accusations also allege NewsClick of trying to sabotage the 2019 elections with a group named Peoples Alliance for Democracy and Secularism.

The FIR also implicates "big Chinese telecom companies," such as Xiaomi and Vivo, for allegedly illegally infusing foreign funds into India through shell companies.

NewsClick vehemently denies these charges, highlighting that, despite multiple raids since 2021, no money laundering complaint has been filed. The Enforcement Directorate (ED), Delhi Police's Economic Offences Wing, and the Income Tax Department have conducted the raids.

It asserted that it has never disseminated news or information under the influence of any Chinese entity or authority. The platform rejected claims of receiving directives from Singham, stating, "All funding acquired by Newsclick has transpired through proper banking channels and has been duly reported to the relevant authorities, as mandated by law. This has been substantiated by the Reserve Bank of India in proceedings before the High Court of Delhi," in an official statement.

Prabir Purkayastha was arrested on Tuesday night, and the NewsClick office in Delhi was sealed following the raids. The case against NewsClick and Purkayastha, registered on 17 August, includes charges under five sections of the anti-terror law UAPA (Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act) and two sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC).

The charges range from terrorist activities, terror funding, criminal conspiracy to promoting enmity between groups, and are based on the alleged receipt of Rs 38 crores in foreign funding by the website.