India, June 11 -- The Delhi High Court has quashed the first information report (FIR) registered by the Economic Offences Wing (EOW) of Delhi Police and the consequential money laundering proceedings initiated by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) against news portal NewsClick and its editor-in-chief Prabir Purkayastha in connection with allegations of foreign funding, terming the same a mala fide and arbitrary exercise of power that amounted to an abuse of the legal process and an attack on free and independent journalism.

A bench of justice Neena Bansal Krishna, in a May 29 verdict released on Wednesday, held that even if EOW's allegations are accepted, no offence for cheating and criminal breach of trust is disclosed in the FIR, and the...