The Delhi Police has made serious allegations against NewsClick, a news portal whose founder and HR head have been arrested under an anti-terror law. Police sources claim that NewsClick received Rs 38 crore from entities linked to Chinese individuals, and some of those funds were shared with activists Gautam Navlakha and Teesta Setalvad, who are involved in other cases.
These allegations come shortly after a New York Times investigation alleged that NewsClick had received money for pro-China propaganda. In response, the police conducted searches at the homes of journalists connected to NewsClick at over 100 locations in Delhi-NCR and Mumbai.
According to Delhi Police sources, NewsClick allegedly received Rs 38 crore from entities linked to Chinese individuals. The funds were allegedly used to influence pro-China content on the portal. The sources claim that Rs 9 crore was received as Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) through inflating share prices, and Rs 29 crore was received as export services fees. However, the police have stated that NewsClick has not provided any proof of exporting services to foreign entities.
The police sources also allege that some of the funds collected by NewsClick were shared with Gautam Navlakha and Teesta Setalvad. Navlakha has been under arrest since 2018 in the Elgar Parishad-Maoist links case, while Setalvad was arrested in June 2022 but was granted bail by the Supreme Court in July. The police claim that Navlakha and Setalvad were involved in cases related to inflammatory speeches and filing false affidavits.
NewsClick has not yet responded to these allegations. The police have reportedly questioned 46 individuals associated with the news portal and have arrested NewsClick founder Prabir Purkayastha and HR head Amit Chakravarty.
The Editors Guild of India has expressed concern over these raids, stating that while the law must take its course, the due process should be followed without impinging on freedom of expression and dissenting voices. Opposition parties have also criticized the government, while Union Minister Anurag Thakur has stated that the agencies’ actions do not need justification.
The investigation is still ongoing, and further details are awaited.