New Delhi: The Enforcement Directorate has slapped a Rs 184-crore FEMA penalty against news portal NewsClick and its editor-in-chief, Prabir Purkayastha, official sources said Monday.
The order specifies that the company that owns the portal, PPK NEWSCLICK Studio Private Limited, has been penalised for an amount of Rs 120 crore, while Purkayastha has been issued the same order for Rs 64 crore of alleged violations, the sources told PTI.
The entities have been found “contravening” the provisions of the Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA) on essentially two counts — misrepresentation of FDI funds apart from misdeclaration of services and exports.
A response from NewsClick on the development is awaited.
The ED had first raided the premises of NewsClick located in the Saidulajab area of the national capital in September, 2021 on charges of money laundering.
The agency has recorded the statements of more than 25 people in this case, including that of Purkayastha.
The BJP, in 2023, had quoted a New York Times news article to allege wrongdoing by the portal and its promoters. The news article had stated the portal was part of a global network that received funding from American billionaire Neville Roy Singham, who allegedly works closely with the Chinese government media machine.
The 2009-founded portal states on its website that it is an independent media organisation dedicated to covering news from India and elsewhere with a focus on progressive movements.
