Thiruvananthapuram (Keralam) [India], June 11 (ANI): Leader of Opposition in Keralam assembly Pinarayi Vijayan on Thursday called the Delhi High Court verdict in NewsClick case 'a major setback for BJP', while recognising it as a victory for 'democratic rights and press freedom.'

In a post on X, the former Keralam Chief Minister accused the BJP of 'misusing central agencies.' Alleging that the case against the news organisation was made to 'suppress political dissent,' Vijayan hailed the court's verdict.

'The Delhi High Court's verdict in the #NewsClick case is a major setback for the BJP that misuses central agencies to suppress political dissent. The action against NewsClick and its editor, Prabir Purkayastha, was an attempt to silence critical journalism and democratic voices. This is a victory for democratic rights and press freedom over the fascist politics of the Sangh Parivar,' he wrote in the post.

https://x.com/pinarayivijayan/status/2065041720090509409?s=46

His remarks come after the Delhi High Court on Wednesday quashed an FIR registered by the Economic Offences Wing (EOW) against NewsClick and its founder-editor, Prabir Purkayastha, over allegations relating to foreign direct investment (FDI), holding that the allegations did not disclose the offences of cheating, criminal breach of trust, or criminal conspiracy.

Consequently, the Court also quashed the Enforcement Directorate's (ED) ECIR that had been initiated based on the FIR.

In a detailed judgment delivered by Justice Neena Bansal Krishna, the Court allowed petitions filed by M/s PPK NewsClick Studio Pvt. Ltd. and Prabir Purkayastha challenging FIR registered under Sections 406, 420 and 120B IPC and the subsequent money laundering proceedings initiated by the ED.

The FIR had been registered by the EOW on a complaint forwarded by the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting alleging irregularities in foreign investment received by NewsClick from a US-based entity, Worldwide Media Holdings LLC (WWMH).

The complaint alleged that NewsClick received approximately Rs. 9.59 crore as FDI in April 2018 and had issued shares at an allegedly inflated premium of Rs 11,510 per share. Investigators claimed that the valuation was structured to circumvent restrictions on foreign investment in digital news media and that a substantial portion of the funds had been diverted towards salaries, consultancy fees and rent.NewsClick challenged the FIR, asserting that the investment was a legitimate foreign direct investment made through authorised banking channels after obtaining a valuation report from an independent chartered accountant.

The company also pointed out that it had sought clarification from the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting in December 2017 regarding FDI in online news platforms and was informed in January 2018 that online news publications did not fall within the ambit of 'print media.'

Examining the ingredients of Sections 420 and 406 IPC, the court found that neither offence was disclosed from the allegations in the FIR.

The judgment held that the foundational FIR itself could not stand and therefore, the money laundering proceedings initiated on the basis of that FIR were also liable to be set aside. The Court accordingly granted relief to the petitioners in the connected petitions as well. (ANI)