Income Tax Department Revokes Non-Profit Status Of The Reporter's CollectivePhoto: | Representative Image Income Tax Department Revokes Non-Profit Status Of The Reporter's CollectivePhoto: | Representative Image The Income Tax Department has revoked The Reporter's Collective's non-profit status. As per the IT department, TRC's journalism, which is known for its investigations, does not "serve a public purpose."
The recent notice to TRC reflects India's already poor ranking when it comes to press freedom.
As per the official statement from TRC, the organisation has functioned as a non-profit fund trust funded by citizens since July 2021.
golden hoyeah"But now the tax authorities have cancelled our non-profit status, claiming journalism does not serve any public purpose and therefore cannot be carried out as a non-profit exercise in India," stated TRC.
The India-Pakistan hockey rivalry has lost its sheen in recent times. Hockey in Pakistan has been in a freefall for the last decade or so while Indians have made a tremendous comeback in the same time period. The two countries used to rule world hockey at one point and the seeds for it were sown during the British rule in India.
"We at The Reporters’ Collective continue to believe that journalism, when done right, is an essential public service for our democracy. Journalism done right is a public good. Investigative journalism that holds the powerful accountable essentially serves the citizens, particularly the poor and the marginalised," the statement added further.
The organisation added that they will be pursuing legal remedies to protect their right to work and carry out investigative journalism.
"The order cancelling our non-profit status severely impairs our ability to do our work and worsens the conditions for independent public-purposed journalism in the country. We are seeking legal remedies to protect the idea of journalism as a public good and our right to carry out investigative journalism, research and training free of encumbrances, fear or threats at The Collective. We stand by all our colleagues at The Collective who have shown exceptional courage, skills, and perseverance to produce journalism that we all are proud of," TRC added.
As per reportsstarbet777, TRC is not the only organisation that has received such notices. Bengaluru-based Kannada website The File has also received a similar notice as it operates under a charitable trust and tax exemptions.
