New Delhi, June 11 (). News portal Newsclick and its editor-in-chief Prabir Purkayastha have got a big relief from the Delhi High Court in the much talked about case related to foreign funding. The court has quashed the FIR lodged by the Economic Offenses Wing (EOW) of Delhi Police and the ECIR lodged by the Enforcement Directorate (ED).
Delhi High Court said in its decision that the law has been misused in this case. The court clarified that the foreign direct investment (FDI) received by Newsclick did not violate any law. The court also said that no such evidence came to light during the investigation which could prove that Prabir Purkayastha had defrauded any person.
The High Court said that even if all the allegations made in the FIR are considered completely true, still an offense under Section 406 (criminal breach of trust) and Section 420 (cheating) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) is not made out. The court also noted that at the time the subject investment was received in April 2018, there was no cap on foreign investment (FDI) in digital news media.
Actually, the Economic Offenses Wing of Delhi Police had registered a case against Newsclick and Prabir Purkayastha in the year 2020. The allegation was that to circumvent the so-called 26 per cent limit on foreign investment in digital media, the company inflated the value of its shares and received about Rs 9.59 crore as foreign investment.
The investigating agencies also claimed that Newsclick had received illegal funding worth crores of rupees from institutions linked to foreign countries, especially China. It was also alleged that this money was used to spread anti-India atmosphere and alleged Chinese propaganda.
—
VKU/ABM