‘They are dealers, not leaders’: Retired judges, officers write to President seeking action against ‘China-backed portal’

ED officials look through files at the office of Newsclick , during a raid in New Delhi. (Express Photo by Tashi Tobgyal/File)

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‘They are dealers, not leaders’: Retired judges, officers write to President seeking action against ‘China-backed portal’

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A group of retired judges, IPS, IRS and IAS officers, and armed forces officers has written a letter to the President demanding action against news portal Newsclick in light of a recent report by ‘The New York Times’ claiming that the portal was funded by a Chinese proxy.

“We have no words to describe such people except as traitors. … we are giving too wide a leverage to all kinds of inimical forces under the garb of ‘free press’. … The email exchanges that are in the public domain establish beyond doubt that these people are not leaders but dealers. They are not columnists but actually fifth columnists,” the letter said.

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The 255 signatories of the letter consist of 14 retired judges, 112 retired bureaucrats including 12 former ambassadors and 129 retired armed forces officers.

While Newsclick founder Prabir Purkayastha did not respond to calls and messages, in a statement issued on Monday, the portal had denied the allegations.

“We respect the sanctity of the legal process and do not intend to indulge in a media trial. The allegations being made against us by certain political actors and sections of the media are unfounded and without basis in fact or law,” it said.

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“Newsclick is an independent news organisation, and any insinuation that we function as a mouth-piece of the Communist Party of China or other interests is false. We reiterate our faith in the Indian courts, and are confident that Newsclick has, and continues to function in accordance with Indian law,” it added.