New Delhi: Newslaundry Online News platform on Saturday said it did business “Honest and Integrity” while the other NewsClick portal said the investigation of it by various institutions included an independent department survey that “held back”.
The tax department surveyed the newslave office located in Sarvodaya Enclave in South Delhi on Friday along with NewsClick in the area (Delhi Selatan) on charges of alleged tax evasion.
“We have nothing to hide and have done everything by books and not in any legal violations or violations.
We do our business honestly and with integrity,” said Co-Founder Newslaundry Abhinandan Sekhri in a message posted on a message posted on His twitter handle.
He said the tax team told him that he “could” speak with his lawyer and the law required him to obey “without seeking legal advice” adding that the officials were polite and professional.
He said, “No hash value signed from the copied data” was given to him and that he considered this as a violation of his fundamental rights for privacy.
The hash value is a numerical value that uniquely identifies data.
The hash value represents a large amount of data as a smaller numeric value, so they are used with digital signatures.
Sekhri said the tax team consisting of 6-7 people arrived at their office at around 12:15 a.m.
and went around 12:40 a.m.
on Saturday.
“They searched and looked through all computer devices on the spot.
My personal cellphone, laptop and several office machines are controlled and all data on those who are downloaded by the IT team,” he said.
Sekhri said this was the second visit by the tax authority to his office, the first in June, and they provided “all documents related to funding and our account” to officials.
“We will work together in any way we are required by law.
We will also continue to practice public interest journalism which is why we exist,” he said.
Our support comes from people who value the news of the public interest and choose to subscribe to newslaundry, not through government advertisements or companies or public relations exercises, Sekhri said, adding that the online portal is proud of the selected and fought models.
Tax officers have said that separate survey operations on two news portals are performed to verify the details of certain tax payments and the delivery of money made by the organization.
As part of the survey survey, carried out below the 133a section of the Income Tax Act, 1961, tax officials only cover the assessment business premise and associated with it and not their housing address.
However, they are authorized to seize documents, computers and electronic devices as part of a surprise action.
NewsClick said the tax team “recorded the Prabir Prabir Purkayastha editor’s statement; confiscated his phone; and take the document – what they call” loose paper “from the place”.
“They also took Prabir’s dump e-mail, Pranjal Editor, and various administrative and financial accounts related to NewClick,” he said in a statement posted on the Handle Twitter.
About 30 employees and support staff NewsClick was in the office along their surveys and their cellphones were temporarily confiscated, and they were not allowed to use their computers and work, he said.
NewsClick said the latest actions against them “seemed to be related to false and unfounded allegations being investigated by the Directorate of Enforcement and Wing’s economic violations, Delhi police.
We have charges this challenged in court”.
“This investigation by various institutions, and this selective accusation, is an effort to withstand independent journalism media organizations – including NewsClick,” he said.
Tax officers who reached the newsclick office around midday on Friday went at midnight.
NewsClick, Purkayastha and other executives were raided by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) earlier in February with the provisions of the prevention of money laundering laws and investigations related to alleged foreign funds that were harmed by their registered companies, which run the news portal.