On Tuesday, October 3, Delhi Police raided several locations in connection with the online portal NewsClick. The home of television journalist turned YouTuber Abhisar Sharma was one of the places seized by the Delhi Police in connection with the Newsclick matter. Abhisar Sharma took to X (formerly Twitter) to report that the Delhi Police showed up at his home and confiscated his laptop and phone.
Delhi police landed at my home. Taking away my laptop and Phone…
— Abhisar Sharma (@abhisar_sharma) October 3, 2023
As reported, the places of several journalists associated with Newsclick, including Sanjay Rajoura, Bhasha Singh, Urmilesh, Prabir Purkayastha, Abhisar Sharma, Aunindyo Chakraborty, and Sohail Hashmi have been raided by the police.
The action by the Delhi Police comes a couple of years after the Enforcement Directorate (ED) conducted raids on the home of NewsClick founder and Editor-in-Chief Prabir Purkayastha. In February 2021, ED found several incriminating documents and suspicious financial transactions from the residence of Purkayastha. Also, 10 more locations related to the PPK NEWS CLICK Studio Private Limited were raided by the ED.
ED raids at NewClick in 2021
According to the sources in ED, NewsClick had received Rs.10 crore under Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) from an American company. Interestingly, NewsClick’s owner Prabir Purkayastha has no idea for what purpose the American company transferred the money to his company’s account. He could not give any proof of work that he has done for the particular company.
Further investigation revealed that another US-based company gave them Rs.20 crore and marked it as ‘Export Remittance’. The money was transferred because NewsClick had uploaded content on a portal named People’s Dispatch.
Sources revealed that Purkayastha also took Rs.1.5 crore rupees in the name of maintenance. Interestingly, he had hired a ninth-class pass electrician for maintenance at his office. The money he took was without any documentation, which made it impossible for him to explain the transaction to ED.
Reportedly, the ED raided the premises of the NewsClick founder in the year 2021 when ‘journalist’ Abhisar Sharma was working for the portal.
During the investigation, the ED also revealed that another NewsClick employee had received Rs.52 lakh from an American company. The same person was said to have connections with CPI as he worked in the IT cell of CPI and managed the Twitter accounts of CPI leaders.
NewsClick, is financed by Chinese Communist Party supporter
Recently in August this year, a report published by The New York Times exposed the ties of an American businessman with the Chinese government and his financial support to an Indian leftist propaganda outlet, NewsClick.
A millionaire named Neville Roy Singham was funding several news publications across the world (including India) to peddle Chinese propaganda, the report stated. “What is less known, and is hidden amid a tangle of nonprofit groups and shell companies, is that Mr. Singham works closely with the Chinese government media machine and is financing its propaganda worldwide,” the article read.
The publication pointed out that Singham has been successful in disseminating Chinese government talking points under the pretext of ‘progressive advocacy’ in countries such as India, Brazil, South Africa, and the United States. Neville Roy Singham, who holds strong ties with the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), is at the forefront of China’s smokeless war.
During its investigation, the American newspaper found that Neville Roy Singham had financed an India-based leftist propaganda outlet named NewsClick. It noted that the news outlet had repeated the talking points of the CCP in the past.
“In New Delhi, corporate filings show, Singham’s network financed a news site, NewsClick, that sprinkled its coverage with Chinese government talking points. “China’s history continues to inspire the working classes,” one video said,” noted The New York Times.
Abhisar Sharma peddling anti-India narrative through NewsClick
‘Journalist’ Abhisar Sharma whose premise was raided by the Delhi Police this morning is known for spreading fake news and peddling anti-India narrative. In September 2019, he used morphed images of journalists from other media houses to peddle fake news and narratives during the Chandrayaan 2 mission. He had edited images of the content of a show to target Aaj Tak journalist Chitra Tripathi. He had launched a fake connection between the show host, Aaj Tak journalist Chitra Tripathi, and PM Modi when no reference to PM Modi was made in the show.
Also, in that year, Sharma, through the propaganda website NewsClick’s YouTube channel went on a deranged rant against cows. So much so that he even declared that cows had become a cause of ‘terror and fear’ for some in India. He furthered the lies by saying how cows are one of the primary reasons for mob lynching in India. He mentioned that in the name of ‘gau raksha’, minorities and Dalits were being terrorized.
Recently in May 2022, he in a NewClck’s YouTube video joined the race to demean the Hindu culture of India and praised the country only for the Taj Mahal built by the Mughal Emperor. Sharma in the video further blatantly stated that the country of India was known worldwide because of the Taj Mahal and that there was no Shiv Mandir before the Taj Mahal.
He slipped by saying that the Taj Mahal was the only identity of India. He forgot that India has been known as the land of temples for centuries and that there are many religious temples, monuments, and marvelous structures other than the Taj Mahal that are the identity of the country.
It must be mentioned that Abhisar Sharma is featured regularly on NewsClick videos wherein he is seen either defending the Congress party or furthering anti-India narratives. The Chinese government is infamous for swaying public opinion in its favour through its propaganda machinery, which ranges from educational institutes to media publications, and NewsClick evidently happens to be one of them.
BJP MP Nishikant Dubey raises the issue of Chinese financing of NewsClick in Parliament
Notably, on August 7 this year, the government happened to take cognizance of Chinese funding to NewsClick after BJP MP Nishikant Dubey raised the issue in Parliament. He cited the report published by the New York Times and said, “Chinese goods are being sold at Rahul Gandhi’s nafrat ki dukaan (hate shop). The New York Times has published an interesting report. About Rs 38 crores have been received by organizations such as NewsClick. The report by the newspaper also reiterated the findings of the Enforcement Directorate. NewsClick is a part of the anti-India, tukde tukde gang. (Prabir) Purkayastha is the owner.”
BJP MP Nishikant Dubey raises the issue of Chinese financing of leftist propaganda outlet #Newsclick in Parliament, names Abhisar Sharma, Swati Chaturvedi and Rohini Singh pic.twitter.com/SDQxdLwunH
— OpIndia.com (@OpIndia_com) August 7, 2023
The BJP leader said that funds accumulated by the NewsClick owner were routed to Maoists, Naxalites, and propaganda artists such as (Abhisar) Sharma, Rohini Singh, and Swati Chaturvedi. He added that the Chinese government is also spending money to create an anti-India narrative.
Nishikant Dubey also exposed the ties of the Congress Party with the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). He accused the grand old party of being in talks with China during the infamous 2017 Dokhlam standoff.
NewsClick was paid to defend China’s handling of COVID-19
During the COVID-19 spread, it was reported how Prabir Purkayastha and the NewsClick team were introduced to Chinese handlers by American businessman Neville Roy Singham for defending China’s handling of COVID-19.
The email exchanges dated March 30, 2020, on China’s handling of COVID-19 between Prabir and Singham were shared by Zee News journalist Sudhir Chaudhary, days after New York Times investigation said that Singham was using its network of nonprofits and media organizations spread across the world to propagate Chinese propaganda.
In the email exchanges shared by Sudhir Chaudhary, Roy is seen introducing the NewsClick team to the Chinese handlers based out of China to provide information that would help them show China in a positive light in handling the coronavirus outbreak.
According to its website, NewsClick is an independent ‘media’ agency dedicated to covering news from India and around the world with a focus on ‘progressive’ causes. It was established in 2009.
Liberals supporting Sharma call raids a ‘threat’ to Freedom of Press
After the current raids, several liberals supporting NewsClick and ‘Journalist’ Abhisar Sharma are crying copious amounts of tears. They are calling the current raids an ‘attack’ on Freedom of Press. Propagandist Rohini Singh, Self-proclaimed Muslim journalist from The Wire, Arfa Khanum Sherwani, Rajdeep Sardesai, Pratik Sinha, the co-founder of Islamic propaganda outlet AltNews questioned the action and declared that the government was “crossing all limits” by conducting raids in the given case.
Journalists raided by the police, laptops and phones taken away because journalism is the biggest crime in new India.
— Rohini Singh (@rohini_sgh) October 3, 2023
Mother of democracy, anyone ?
— Arfa Khanum Sherwani (@khanumarfa) October 3, 2023
In early morning raids on homes of several journalists, stand-up comics, satirists and commentators, Delhi police has started interrogations in matters “related to terror links” https://t.co/pBw293hvYE
It is pertinent to note that all the individuals who are being raided currently have been spreading anti-India propaganda for a very long time. None of them were prosecuted for their opinions and views and the raids were not because the government of India willy-nilly decided to prosecute those who are journalists.
The individuals being raided were or are connected to NewsClick which is under scanner for taking money from a hostile nation – China – to further their state propaganda in India and against the sovereignty of India.
