A local court on Wednesday granted 10 more days to the Delhi Police to file a charge sheet in the case under the stringent anti-terror Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA) against news portal NewsClick for allegedly receiving foreign funding.
Special public prosecutors Akhand Pratap Singh and Suraj Rathi, appearing for the police, sought the extension, saying the investigators needed more time to analyse new documents found during the investigation into the case on March 15.
Additional sessions judge Hardeep Kaur granted more time after going through the case diary and hearing the submissions of both parties.
UAPA’s Section 43D provides that if the investigation in a case is not completed within the stipulated time, a further 90 days may be granted.
The court earlier granted more to police for submitting the charge sheet in December for 60 days and 20 days on February 23. It also extended the judicial custody of NewsClick founder Prabir Purkayastha and HR head Amit Chakraborty, who were arrested in the case on October 3, for 10 days.
The Delhi Police filed the case against NewsClick in August 2023 days after a New York Times report alleged the portal was part of a global network that received money for pushing Chinese propaganda. Purkayastha is alleged to have conspired with a group named Peoples Alliance for Democracy and Secularism to sabotage the 2019 general elections.
NewsClick has repeatedly rejected all charges, saying that proceedings against it were a “blatant attempt” to muzzle the free press.
