The court had earlier said its request to defer the hearing in Ghaziabad did not reflect the merit of the case.

Rana Ayyub’s petition challenging the summons issued to her by a Ghaziabad court in a PMLA case has been dismissed by the Supreme Court, according to LiveLaw. The court said the trial can decide where the alleged offence of money laundering took place as a “question of fact”. 

A bench of Justices V Ramasubramanian and JB Pardiwala allowed Ayyub to raise the matter before the special CBI court in Ghaziabad. The court had earlier reserved its judgment on Ayyub’s petition. On January 25, it had asked a special court in Ghaziabad to adjourn the proceedings against the journalist until the top court decides the matter. The top court had said its request to defer the hearing in Ghaziabad did not reflect the merit of the case and was only a decision taken due to lack of time.

In October last year, the Enforcement Directorate had filed a complaint against the journalist at the Ghaziabad court over alleged violations in raising funds for Covid relief. The central agency had previously locked Ayyub’s assets worth over Rs 1.77 crore.

Ayyub, who writes for influential international news platforms such as the Washington Post and is often critical of the Narendra Modi government, has been under investigation since she was named in an FIR in 2021 for allegedly raising money for charity but using it herself. In March last year, the journalist was stopped from flying out to London after she received summons from the ED.

The journalist had raised money for three relief campaigns on Ketto since early 2020 for those affected by Covid, floods and the migrant crisis caused by the Covid lockdown. In an email on August 27, 2021, Ketto told donors of Ayyub’s campaigns that she had raised Rs 2.69 crore, of which she spent Rs 1.25 crore and would pay Rs 90 lakh in taxes.

But did Ayyub’s Covid fundraisers really violate the FCRA? Read Newslaundry’s report to find out.