UN human rights experts said on Monday that journalist Rana Ayyub is being repeatedly attacked online by false and sectarian. The UN further said that such attacks should be promptly and thoroughly investigated by the Indian authorities and judicial persecution against them must be immediately ended. At the same time, India has also given its response to this statement of the UN and has warned the UN.
Let us inform that on the question raised by the UN, India said that the allegations of so-called judicial harassment against Rana Ayyub are baseless and unwarranted. India upholds the rule of law, but it is equally clear that no one is above the law. We expect SRs to be informed objectively and accurately. Promoting a misleading story only tarnishes the reputation of the United Nations.
After this, a note verbal will be issued by our Permanent Mission in Geneva, ANI quoted sources as saying. They will also raise it at the United Nations Office in Geneva.
Recently, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) has attached more than Rs 1.77 crore of journalist Rana Ayyub in a money laundering case. It is alleged that the donations raised for relief work through the online crowdfunding platform Keto were used for personal expenses. During investigation, the agency found that Ayyub had not only created bogus bills in the name of certain entities to claim expenditure on relief work, but also made a fixed deposit of Rs 50 lakh from funds raised on the online platform.
The investigation was launched against Ayyub in September last year on the basis of the first FIR by the Ghaziabad police, in which complainant Vikas Sankrityayan had accused him of illegally receiving public money. While registering the case, Ayyub had claimed that the allegations of misappropriation of funds against him were malicious and baseless.
Funds raised on keto for these three campaigns
It was claimed in the UP Police FIR that Rana Ayyub had raised funds for these campaigns – first for slum dwellers and farmers, relief work for Assam, Bihar and Maharashtra and Corona affected in India between April 2020 and June 2021. to help people. All this was done without taking approval certificate and registration from the government, which is required as per the Foreign Contribution Regulation Act.
The money raised was also sent to the account of father and sister.
ED’s investigation has revealed that Ayyub had collected a total of Rs 2.69 crore on keto for these three missions. These funds were largely withdrawn into the bank accounts of his sister Iffat Shaikh and father Mohammad Ayub Waqif. An official said that out of this amount, he had sent Rs 72 lakh in his bank account, Rs 37.15 lakh in sister’s account and Rs 1.60 crore in father’s account.
