Recently, Supreme Court postponed the hearing of pleas filed by Prabir Purkayastha, the founder of NewsClick, and its HR head, Amit Chakravarty. These pleas were made in response to their arrest under the anti-terror law, UAPA.

A bench of Justices BR Gavai Prashant Kumar Mishra told senior advocate Kapil Sibal, appearing for both the accused, that it will take up the pleas after the vacation.

Mr. Sibal, the senior advocate representing the case, argued that this matter is governed by a recent judgment of the Supreme Court, in which it was established that the grounds of arrest must be promptly disclosed to the accused. However, in this specific case, no such information has been shared with the accused individuals.

Mr. Sibal also mentioned that there is an application for medical bail pending before the court. The bench stated that it would consider the medical bail application in conjunction with the main case after the Diwali vacation. Back on October 19, the Supreme Court had asked the Delhi Police to respond to the pleas filed by Purkayastha and Chakravarty, challenging the Delhi High Court's decision made on October 13.

The high court, on October 13, had rejected their petitions against arrest and subsequent police custody in the case. Both of them had been arrested by the Special Cell of the Delhi Police on October 3. Following their arrest, they had appealed to the high court, contesting the arrest and the seven-day police custody, and had requested immediate release as an interim measure. However, the court declined to grant them relief, stating that there were no procedural irregularities or violations of the provisions of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) in their arrest.

The city police has filed cases against both individuals under UAPA, alleging that they received funds to disseminate pro-China propaganda. According to the FIR, a significant amount of money was allegedly funneled from China to the news portal with the intention of "disrupting the sovereignty of India" and inciting disaffection against the country.

The FIR also alleged that Mr. Purkayastha conspired with a group called the People's Alliance for Democracy and Secularism (PADS) to undermine the electoral process during the 2019 Lok Sabha elections.