Enforcement Directorate Fines NewsClick, Purkayastha

The India — Enforcement Directorate has imposed a cumulative penalty of Rs 184 crore on news portal NewsClick and its editor-in-chief, Prabir Purkayastha, for alleged violations of the Foreign Exchange Management Act, 1999 (FEMA). NewsClick was fined Rs 120 crore, and Prabir Purkayastha Rs 64 crore. The adjudicating authority found the contraventions to be substantial, deliberate, and systemic, involving large-scale foreign exchange transactions and breaches of statutory declarations. Specifically, NewsClick allegedly received approximately Rs 9.59 crore in Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) during FY 2018-19 by misrepresenting its business activity, thereby bypassing prescribed sectoral conditions and entry route requirements under FEMA. Additionally, foreign inward remittances totaling Rs 82.63 crore, purportedly for export of services between FY 2018-19 and 2023-24, were found to contravene FEMA provisions due to misclassification of exports and failure to comply with mandatory reporting requirements. The transactions were deliberately structured to defeat the objectives of India's foreign exchange regulatory framework. Prabir Purkayastha was held liable under Section 42 of FEMA as he was responsible for the company's business conduct. This action follows a 2021 money laundering probe by the India — Enforcement Directorate and allegations, cited by the India — Bharatiya Janata Party from a The New York Times report, that NewsClick received funding from American billionaire Neville Roy Singham to push Chinese government talking points.