Amit Chakravarty, HR head of news portal NewsClick, has moved an application before the court concerned, saying that he wants to become an approver in the case and is ready to give his statement under 164 Crpc before Magistrate in the case registered under the provisions of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, 1967, following allegations that News Portal NewsClick received huge money for pro-China propaganda.
Chakravarty moved an application before the Additional Sessions Judge, Hardeep Kaur, under relevant sections to turn approver in the case. The approver, an accomplice who decides to testify against the co-accused in exchange for a pardon, is subject to examination and treatment under the CrPC. Safeguards are in place to prevent coerced or deceitful confessions, and the approver’s testimony must be supported by corroborative evidence as per the law.
Last week, the Patiala House Court of Delhi granted the Delhi Police Special Cell a further two months to complete the investigation.
On December 19, the police moved an application in Patiala House Court seeking an extension of time to complete the investigation in the case. The police had sought three more months to complete the investigation into the matter.
The Additional Sessions Judge, Hardeep Kaur, on Friday, allowed the Delhi Police plea and granted the police 60 days of further time. Meanwhile, the court also extended the judicial custody of Prabir Purkayastha and others in the matter until January 2024.
Recently, the court dismissed Newsclick’s founder and Editor-in-Chief Prabir Purkayastha’s application, which sought directions to release his electronic devices seized by Delhi Police. In October, Delhi Police arrested Purkayastha and Newsclick HR Head Amit Chakraborty under the provisions of UAPA.
Delhi Police’s Special Cell, in its FIR against Purkayastha, stated that the People’s Dispatch Portal, owned and maintained by PPK Newsclick Studio Pvt Ltd., has been used for intentionally peddling false narratives through paid news in place of crores of illegally routed foreign funds as part of a conspiracy.
The FIR further stated that foreign funds in crores have been infused illegally in India by Indian and foreign entities inimical to India in pursuance of a conspiracy to disrupt the sovereignty and territorial integrity of India, to cause disaffection against India and to threaten the unity, integrity, and security of India.
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