NEW DELHI: After the Enforcement Directorate, it was the CBI’s turn on Wednesday to raid NewsClick founder-editor Prabir Purkayastha’s office and residence over alleged violation of the Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Act.
The CBI in a statement said, “It was alleged that the said private company had received unexplained export remittance of Rs 28.46 crore through four foreign entities in violation of FCRA provisions and there was also an unexplained receipt of foreign fund of Rs 9.59 crore by incorrect characterisation of the fund as FDI.”
The FIR has also named American billionaire Neville Roy Singham, who runs an IT consultancy firm. NewsClick in a post said CBI is the fifth agency that is investigating it and denied all allegations against it. The Delhi Police in its case against the portal had alleged that the funds were infused into NewsClick by a member of Communist Party of China and Neville Roy Singham.
NewsClick had hit the headlines after the New York Times reported that it received funds from Singham for allegedly running pro-Chinese propaganda. The Delhi Police Special Cell had on October 3 arrested Purkayastha and the human resources department head of the portal, Amit Chakravarty, in a case under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act.