While this is the first time there has been such action against Newslaundry, NewsClick has been at the receiving end of action from the Enforcement Directorate previously.
The offices of digital media outlets Newslaundry and NewsClick were searched and surveyed on Friday, September 10, by the Income Tax department. NewsClick has been at the receiving end of action from the Enforcement Directorate previously. There are currently no details about why both organisations are being raided, sources told TNM that the search and survey started in the morning and that phones and other equipment was seized for now. Both organisations have continued to report on issues such as the farmers’ protest and the Hathras gangrape and murder case, and have been critical of the Union government and its policies. The Enforcement Directorate in February this year had raided the office of NewsClick as well as the home of its editor-in-chief, Prabir Purkayastha. In addition, homes of other members of senior management were also searched. The raid - which took place on at least five consecutive days - saw 10 premises of NewsClick searched by ED officials. These raids reportedly pertained to a money laundering case and foreign funding. In July, the Delhi High Court had extended the interim protection from coercive action granted to Newsclick and Prabir Purkayastha in connection with the ED money-laundering case. NewsClick had earlier sought quashing of the FIR lodged by Delhi Police on the allegations of foreign funding. The allegations in the FIR were that the petitioner company, PPK Newsclick Studio Pvt Ltd, received Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) of Rs 9.59 crore from Worldwide Media Holdings LLC USA during the financial year 2018-19 by overvaluing the shares of the petitioner company to avoid the alleged cap of 26 per cent of FDI in a digital news website. At the time, Press Council of India, Editors Guild and Digipub had condemned the raids and called them unsavory and reeking of malaise. NewsClick had reacted then and said, “It has become a routine practice with the present government to deploy government-controlled agencies to deal with all those who disagree with and criticise the government. In the past, the income tax department, the ED, various Central investigative agencies like the Central Bureau of Investigation and National Investigation Agency, have been selectively used in this manner against a range of people – from journalists to political leaders, to even farmers’ leaders. In the meantime, Newsclick will continue to report and record voices of the unheard and unseen people of India, and the world, who are struggling to build a life of dignity and well-being. Efforts such as these raids, to suppress protests and indeed, any striving for progressive thought, will not deter those who stand for justice.” Earlier this year, the offices of Dainik Bhaskar were raided by the Income Tax Department, reportedly, for tax evasion. The raids came after Dainik Bhaskar published many articles that showed the government’s lapses in handling the COVID-19 situation. With PTI inputs
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