NewsClick slams IT department for ‘cruel’ action, says can’t pay salaries as accounts frozen

 'As a result of this high-handed action, salaries of all employees — journalists, videographers, and administrative and support staff — and consultants and contributors cannot be paid, including for the 19 days of December they have already worked'

Prabir Purkayastha and Githa Hariharan.: File Photo.

TT Special Correspondent, New Delhi, 20.12.23 : Capital-based news portal NewsClick has slammed the income tax department for its “cruel” action that it claims has prevented the company from accessing its bank accounts.

In a statement on Tuesday, the website said: “As a result of this high-handed action, salaries of all employees — journalists, videographers, and administrative and support staff — and consultants and contributors cannot be paid, including for the 19 days of December they have already worked.”

Two of the website’s executives are in jail facing five parallel investigations by the Delhi police, Enforcement Directorate, income tax department and the CBI on multiple charges, including terrorism, for allegedly accepting funds illegally from Shanghai-based US investor Neville Roy Singham.

The police have described the tech magnate as an “accused” and an “active member” of the Communist Party of China and said that his funding was aimed at disrupting “the sovereignty and territorial integrity of India”.

The website added in its statement: “As of the evening of December 18, NewsClick has been unable to make any bank payments due to action by the Income Tax Department.

“This action, which has virtually frozen our accounts, appears to be a continuation of the administrative-legal siege of the news portal which began with the Enforcement Directorate (ED) raids in February 2021, followed by an IT department survey in September 2021, and the October 3, 2023, crackdown by the Delhi Police Special Cell.”

The Leftist news portal added: “NewsClick has always complied with the laws of the land, including all tax regulations. The claims levelled by the Income Tax Department are without any basis.

“Also, NewsClick did not receive any intimation of the freezing of accounts, and the staff discovered it by chance while trying to make routine payments last evening.”

The firm further said: “NewsClick and its legal counsel are reviewing the developments. Subsequently, legal appeals against this unjust and cruel measure will be initiated at the earliest.”