I&B Minister Anurag Thakur
Credit: PTI Photo
The BJP on Tuesday defended the detainment of several journalists, with Union Minister for Information and Broadcasting Anurag Thakur saying that the move needs no justification. If anyone has carried out any illegal activity, agencies are free to carry out investigations, he said. Party spokesperson RP Singh said that those joining hands with China will face punishment.
Several journalists associated with the news portal NewsClick were either detained or called for questioning at the Lodi Road police station.
Speaking to reporters at a function in Bhubaneshwar, Thakur said that investigative agencies should be free to probe. “I don't need to justify (the move). If anyone has done something wrong, then probe agencies will carry out investigations as per the rules. If you have earned money through illegal means … investigative agencies are independent and they should be freely allowed to do their job,” Thakur said.
Party spokesperson RP Singh alleged that the portal was using money from China to spread Chinese propaganda and defame India, adding that such acts warrant strict action against those working with anti-India tendencies.
“If an agency runs the agenda of China using their money, it should not be allowed. Investigations were already going on against them. They are using China’s money to promote China and defame India. Strict actions will be taken against all of those who are taking money from foreign countries and working against India,” Singh told reporters.
The government started investigations against the news portal in August this year, following an investigative piece published by The New York Times, which linked NewsClick to a list of sites that received funding from a network linked to US millionaire Neville Roy Singham, alleging that the funding led to the promotion of Chinese propaganda.