Prabir Purkayastha is an Indian engineer who is the founder and editor-in-chief of news website Newsclick. In 2023, he came into limelight when he was arrested by Delhi Police in a case registered under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) against his news website. The case against NewsClick was filed following allegations that it had received funding from American billionaire Neville Roy Singham for pro-China propaganda.
Contents
Wiki/Biography
Prabir Purkayastha was born in 1950 (age 73 years; as of 2023) in Delhi, India. He received his master’s degree from Motilal College of Engineering. He joined the Indian Institute of Technology for his master’s thesis. He also attended the Language School at Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi. Prabir was associated with student politics while studying in JNU. In 1975, during the Emergency, Prabir Purkayastha was arrested by the police from Jawaharlal Nehru University when he was trying to stop students from attending classes. However, it was a case of mistaken identity as the police were searching for Devi Prasad Tripathi. During his college days, he used to write articles on various social issues.
Physical Appearance
Height (Approx): 5′ 9″
Hair Color: Salt and Pepper
Eye colour: brown
Family
parents and siblings
Prabir Purkayastha’s mother’s name is S. Purkayastha.
wife and children
He is married to writer Geeta Hariharan. Both of them also have a son named Prateek.
Prabir Purkayastha with his wife Geeta Hariharan
Reportedly, his first marriage was to Ashok Lata Jain.
An old picture of Prabir Purkayastha and Ashok Lata Jain
Affairs/Girlfriends
Reportedly, he had a love affair with Ashok Lata Jain when he was studying at Jawaharlal Nehru University in New Delhi. According to some reports, both of them later married each other.
livelihood
Prabir Purkayastha started his career as a corporate employee. In 2009, when he was working as a consultant in a firm, he came up with the idea of starting a news website. Simultaneously, he rented a small room, which he used as his news studio and started his venture Newsclick. He is also the editor-in-chief of Newsclick. Prabir is one of the founding members of Delhi Science Forum.
Prabir Purkayastha during a meeting
Purkayastha has co-authored the book Enron Blowout: Corporate Capitalism and Theft of the Global Commons (2002) with Vijay Prasad. He is also the co-author of the book Uncle Sam’s Nuclear Cabin (2007). In 2021, Prabir, along with Indranil and Richa Chintan, co-edited the book Political Journeys in Health: Essays by and for Amit Sengupta.
controversies
china funding row
On 3 October 2023, Prabir Purkayastha was arrested by the Delhi Police in connection with a case registered under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) against his news website Newsclick. Delhi Police claimed that Newsclick had allegedly received Rs. Rs 38 crore from China-linked networks to promote pro-China content on the website. Police further said that Rs. Reportedly received Rs 29 crore as fees for export services. Rs 9 crore received as FDI by increasing share prices.
Prabir Purkayastha in police custody
Before Prabir’s arrest, police searched the homes and offices of journalists, writers, academics and contributors associated with Newsclick, and seized phones and laptops of all employees, contributors and consultants of the news portal.
Delhi Police personnel carrying material seized during the raid at Newsclick office in Delhi.
Hours after the raid, the Editors Guild of India, a non-profit organization of journalists, issued a statement urging the Center to follow due process and avoid enacting draconian laws to intimidate the press. read the statement,
EGI is concerned that these raids are another attempt to rein in the media. However we believe that if genuine crimes are involved the law must take its course, due process must be followed. Investigations into specific crimes should not create a general atmosphere of intimidation under the shadow of draconian laws, or curtail freedom of expression and dissent and critical voices.
Earlier, an FIR was registered against Newsclick by the Delhi Special Cell under sections 13, 16, 17, 18 and 22 of the Anti-Terrorist Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act and sections 153A and 120B of the Indian Penal Code (IPC). Went. On 17 August 2023, The New York Times alleged that the news website had received information from a network running a campaign in support of China and its propaganda.
Facts/General Knowledge
- According to some sources, he was once associated with the Communist Party of India (Marxist).
- According to some sources he suffers from high blood pressure, diabetes and asthma.
- Prabir is a supporter of scientific initiatives in the fields of power, telecommunications and software.
Categories: Biography
Source: vcmp.edu.vn