Delhi court sends Newsclick's founder and HR head to nine-day judicial custody

A Delhi court on Wednesday sent news portal Newsclick's founder and editor-in-chief Prabir Purkayastha and HR head Amit Chakravarty to nine-day judicial custody. 

The Special Cell of Delhi Police today moved an application seeking nine-day custodial remand of both accused.

They were produced before the Patiala House court at the end of their judicial remand period.

They were arrested in a case lodged under anti-terror law UAPA over allegations that the news portal received money to spread pro-China propaganda.

According to the FIR, a large amount of funds to the news portal came from China to ''disrupt the sovereignty of India'' and cause disaffection against the country.

It also alleged Purkayastha conspired with a group -- People's Alliance for Democracy and Secularism (PADS) -- to sabotage the electoral process during the 2019 Lok Sabha polls.

Raids were conducted at 88 locations in Delhi and seven in other states on October 3 on the suspects named in the FIR and those that surfaced in the analysis of data, police said.

Around 300 electronic gadgets were also seized from the offices of NewsClick and residences of the journalists who were examined. Following the raids, 46 individuals, including nine female journalists, were questioned by the Special Cell in Delhi and NCR.

With inputs from PTI