Supreme Court Rules NewsClick Founder Prabir Purkayastha’s Arrest Invalid: A Victory for Press Freedom
A Landmark Decision Upholds the Rights of Journalists in India
MOHAN KHOUND
The arrest of Prabir Purkayastha, the founder of the online news portal NewsClick, has been declared “invalid in the eyes of law” by the Supreme Court of India, leading to his imminent release from custody after over six months.
Purkayastha had been accused of using funding from China to propagate ‘anti-national propaganda’ through NewsClick.
On Tuesday (14-05-2024), the Supreme Court ruled that the arrest and remand of the 74-year-old journalist under the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA) by the Delhi Police were unlawful.
The ruling was handed down by Justices B.R. Gavai and Sandeep Mehta who stated that neither Purkayastha nor his counsel were informed of the grounds for his arrest in writing, a violation of his rights.
The arrest of Purkayastha took place in the early hours of October 4, 2023. However, his legal representation was not given a written explanation of the reasons behind his arrest in time, thereby preventing him from arguing for bail during the remand hearing. This lack of due process was highlighted by the Supreme Court in its judgment.
Justice Mehta, who delivered the judgement for the Bench, stated, “There is no hesitation in the mind of this court that the copy of the remand application…was not provided to the accused-appellant (Mr. Purkayastha) or his counsel before the passing of the order of remand dated October 4, 2023. This vitiates his arrest and subsequent remand.”
Following his arrest, Purkayastha was rushed to a Magistrate, who issued an order at 6 am remanding him into custody. His legal counsel was not informed of this development until after the custody order was passed, further undermining his rights.
Senior advocate Kapil Sibal, who represented Purkayastha, criticised the police’s actions, arguing that the power to arrest is not discretionary and should be supported by solid reasons. He highlighted the fact that the denial of a written explanation for the arrest constituted a violation of Purkayastha’s right to life and due process of law.
Despite the Delhi Police’s argument that the UAPA only required them to “inform” the accused of the reasons for arrest, the Supreme Court maintained that Purkayastha should have been given a written copy of the grounds for his arrest. The court’s verdict quashed Purkayastha’s arrest and remand, and overturned the Delhi High Court’s decision upholding his detention.
The Supreme Court added a caveat to its ruling, stipulating that Purkayastha must furnish bail bonds for his release as a chargesheet has already been filed in the trial court by the police. The court clarified that its judgment was not a comment on the merits of the case against Purkayastha.
Reacting to the Supreme Court’s judgement, Mr. Raju of the Delhi Police sought clarification on whether this decision would affect the police’s powers of arrest in the future. In response, Justice Gavai stated, “We have not said anything about that. Whatever you are permitted under the law, you can do.”
Purkayastha’s arrest had sparked widespread outrage among journalists’ collectives across India.
Several of them had written to the Chief Justice of India expressing concern about the “inherent malice” behind the raids at the homes of 46 journalists, editors, writers, and professionals connected to NewsClick and the seizure of their electronic devices.
These collectives stated that “journalism cannot be prosecuted as terrorism,” and called the invocation of the UAPA “especially chilling.”
The Supreme Court ruling on Prabir Purkayastha’s arrest marks a significant victory for press freedom in India, highlighting the importance of upholding the rights of journalists and reinforcing the necessity for due process in law.
15-05-2024
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