Shillong, October 16: Prabir Purkayastha, the founder of NewsClick, and the company’s HR head, Amit Chakravarty, have taken their legal battle to the Supreme Court.
As per India Today, they are challenging a recent decision by the Delhi High Court, which dismissed their plea against arrest in a case under the stringent Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA).
Last week, a bench of the Delhi High Court, led by Justice Tushar Rao Gedela, stated that it “found no merit” in the pleas of Purkayastha and Chakravarty. The court refused to interfere with their arrest and subsequent police remand, noting that there was no “procedural infirmity” or violation of legal or constitutional provisions related to the arrest. The court’s order stated, “The petition, being devoid of any merit, along with pending applications, is dismissed.”
In their petition, besides challenging their arrest over the non-supply of reasons, the petitioners also argued that the subsequent remand order sending them to 7-day police custody was issued in the absence of their lawyers. They further alleged an “obvious discrepancy” in the trial court’s remand order regarding the time of pronouncement.
This legal battle has now been escalated to the Supreme Court as Prabir Purkayastha and Amit Chakravarty continue to contest their arrest under UAPA.