NEW DELHI: The raids by Delhi police’s special cell on various locations in the NewsClick portal funding case drew mixed reactions from political parties on Tuesday.
The BJP defended the raids saying the law enforcing agencies were free to act against anything that goes against the law. The law will take its course in the case, the BJP said.
On the other hand, opposition parties, including Congress, lambasted the Central government for the raids.Information and Broadcasting Minister Anurag Thakur denied government involvement in the raids. He said probe agencies in the country are independent and work as per law. “I need not justify the raid. If someone has done something wrong, probe agencies work on it... Nowhere is it written that if you have got money through illegal manner or done something objectionable, then probe agencies cannot investigate that,” Thakur told the media
In a statement, Opposition bloc INDIA strongly condemned the raids and alleged the BJP government's "coercive" actions are directed only against those who speak truth to power and not against those who spread hatred and divisiveness.
However, Union Information and Broadcasting Minister Anurag Thakur said probe agencies in the country are independent and work as per law.
"I need not justify the raid. If someone has done something wrong, probe agencies work on it. Nowhere is it written that if you have got money through illegal manner or done something objectionable, probe agencies cannot investigate that," Thakur said in response to queries at a press conference in Bhubaneswar.
"The probe agencies are independent and they work as per the law."
READ HERE: Journalist bodies condemn NewsClick raids, say they are to divert attention from burning issues
BJP spokesperson Shehzad Poonawalla told media that the law enforcing agencies discharge their duty impartially. However, Congress termed the raids a kind of imposition of emergency on the freedom of press. The Opposition INDIA bloc strongly condemned the raids and alleged that the BJP government’s “coercive” actions were directed only against those who speak the truth and not against those who spread hatred and divisiveness.
Taking to X, Congress leader KC Venugopal said INDIA stands against any form of intimidation or silencing of journalistic voices. “We are on the side of democracy, not dictatorship,” he said, adding that BJP government had tried to convert the media into a mouthpiece for its partisan and ideological interests by facilitating the media takeover by crony capitalists.
INDIA stands against any form of intimidation or silencing of journalistic voices. We are on the side of democracy, not dictatorship. This is nothing but yet another distraction from the most important question in India today - of a nationwide caste census. pic.twitter.com/FG1UWXWbrT
— K C Venugopal (@kcvenugopalmp) October 3, 2023Congress leader Shashi Tharoor slammed the government over the raids, saying these are not the actions of a “mother of democracy” but of an “insecure and autocratic state.” “The government has disgraced itself and our democracy today,” Tharoor posted on X.
Other parties such as the RJD, Leftists and others also condemned the government. The AAP said the raids were meant to scare the journalists. CPM general secretary Sitaram Yechury said cops also landed at his official residence in Delhi, but they had come to question the son of a party staff who works for the website.
Referring to the raids, D Raja, general secretary of the Communist Party of India also launched an offensive against the Centre. “BJP’s crackdown on media has already brought India among the bottom 20 countries in press freedom. Delhi Police under the direct control of MHA raided the residences of journalists Urmilesh, Bhasha Singh, Abhisar Sharma, Paranjoy Guha Thakurta & others and seized laptops and phones,” he posted on X.
Terming the incident an attempt to gag the media, he said, “They just took his laptop and phone.” He said he “strongly condemns the growing brazen assaults on the media.” The party also criticised the action. It called upon all Indians to rise in unison to protest against such a conspiracy.
