ED moves SC against Delhi HC order quashing PMLA case against news portal NewsClick

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has filed an appeal with the Supreme Court over a recent decision by the Delhi High Court to quash a money laundering case against online news portal NewsClick and its founder, Prabir Purkayastha. The ED argues that the May 29, 2026, order by the HC "fails to consider any of the evidence and incriminating material" presented to the court in support of the allegations.

The agency claims that the HC's assertion that "despite investigation being carried out for a year and a half, no incriminating material has been found" is "erroneous."

The ED asserts that the HC's intervention prevented a thorough investigation into the case. According to the probe agency, the "test of quashing at the stage of investigation is only to see the allegations and not whether any incriminating material is found." Additionally, the ED points out that the HC had previously granted an order in 2021 preventing coercive action against the respondents.

The ED's multiple applications seeking clarifications and the vacation of stay remained pending for approximately three years, effectively imposing an embargo on the ED's ability to fully investigate the case.

The ED's appeal highlights that the impugned order was reserved by the High Court on December 3, 2025, and pronounced on May 29, 2026, a delay of five months and 26 days, which deviates from the Supreme Court's judgment in "Ravindra Pratap Shahi vs. State of U.P. & Ors." The ED argues that the prolonged period in pronouncing the judgment likely led to the overlooking or unaddressing of several critical contentions raised by the prosecution.

The case initially stemmed from a 2020 complaint alleging that NewsClick received Foreign Direct Investment through a mechanism that inflated share transactions to circumvent FDI limits on digital news media. The HC ruled that even accepting the state's allegations in full, the essential elements of the charged offenses were not established.