NewsClick Raids: Founder Prabir Purkayastha, HR Manager Arrested Under UAPA

New Delhi: NewsClick’s founder and Editor-in-Chief, Prabir Purkayastha, and the HR manager of the company Amit Chakravarty were arrested by the Delhi Police under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA). Both were remanded to 7-day police custody on Wednesday.

Purkayastha and Chakravarty were arrested after a day-long raid by the Delhi police at the NewsClick office and residences of around 46 journalists and activists connected with the news portal. It was alleged that NewsClick received money for pro-China propaganda.

A recent New York Times report had accused the NewsClick website of allegedly receiving money from a US millionaire, Neville Roy Singham, for pro-China propaganda in India.

Opposition parties and various journalist bodies, including the Editors Guild of India (EGI), condemned the Delhi Police action, calling it an attempt to “muzzle” the press.