Following the I-T department’s move to freeze the bank accounts of online news portal NewsClick’s employees, the journalist fraternity has come forward to express outrage.
In a joint statement released on Wednesday, December 20, they said that the move by the I-T department violates labour laws. “The I-T department, without any warning has in one stroke deprived a hundred media persons and their families of a steady source of income.”
Soon after the accounts were frozen, NewsClick released a statement calling it an unjust and cruel move. The organisation stated that they would take the legal route.
Siasat.com reached out to a NewsClick employee who said that the move would impact the livelihood of many. “Some of my colleagues are based out of metro cities, some live in rented houses, some are sole earners in their families. This move will surely impact us, especially when the holiday season is approaching,” he said, requesting anonymity.
On October 3, the Delhi Police Special Cell conducted raids at 30 offices and residences of current and former journalists associated with the online media outlet NewsClick. They were questioned regarding their past and current news reports including the COVID-19 coverage and farmers’ protests.
Many senior journalists were questioned including video journalist Abhisar Sharma, Bhasha Singh, Urmilesh, NewsClick editor Prabir Purkayastha and writer Githa Hariharan, Aritry Das, journalist and commentator on the political economy Aunindyo Chakravarty, activist and historian Sohail Hashmi, and satirist and stand-up comic Sanjay Rajaura.
Officials seized electronic evidence, laptops, mobile phones, pen drives and took data dumps of hard disks from the NewsClick offices. Subsequently, the Delhi Police Special Cell sealed the NewsClick office.
While others were left free, NewsClick founder Prabir Purkayastha and HR head Amit Chakravarty were arrested under the draconian Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act invoking several sections (13, 16, 17, 18, and 22, along with 153(a) (promoting enmity between different groups on grounds of religion, race, place of birth, residence, language, etc., and doing acts prejudicial to maintenance of harmony) and 120 (b) (party to a criminal conspiracy other than a criminal conspiracy to commit an offence) of the Indian Penal Code.
Mentioning the above details in the letter, the journalist association said that with no assurance of when they would get back their devices, many had to buy a new one, considering they are the sole breadwinners in their family.
“We demand that the harassment of media and media persons in the form of raids, arrests under non-bailable draconian clauses and freezing of accounts without prior information should be stopped. An independent media strengthens the democracy; demoralizing and stifling it will have the opposite effect,” concluded the letter.
The letter was signed by the Press Club of India, Delhi Union of Journalists, Indian Women’s Press Corps, Press Association, Kerala Union of Working Journalists and Working News Cameraman Association.
