NEW DELHI: A US-based journalist for news agency Reuters, Raphael Satter, whose Overseas Indian Citizenship (OCI) card was cancelled by Government of India, leading to him filing a case at the Delhi High Court, had openly violated the OCI card holders’ rules that clearly stipulate that the card holder will have to take prior permission from the Ministry of Home Affairs for doing certain activities in India, which in Satter’s case was engaging in journalism.
The Sunday Guardian has accessed documentary evidence that clearly indicates that Satter, while holding an OCI card, was engaging in journalistic activities while being in India to meet his wife and family members.
In November 2023, Reuters published a story written by Satter and two other journalists in which he wrote about a Delhi-based information technology firm, Appin, which he claimed was involved in cyber espionage.
Later, on 4 December, acting on the application filed by “Association of Appin Training Centres”, a Delhi court granted an initial injunction on their request and ordered Reuters to take down the article, which it did while it appealed that takedown order.
In October 2024, the same court vacated the injunction, noting that “as yet, the plaintiff has not been able to show any prima facie case to make interference in the process of journalism.”
On 4 December 2023, as per the claims made by the US-based Satter in the Delhi High Court through his lawyer, he was communicated by the Indian government that his OCI status, which was allowed to him a year earlier, has been revoked for “practising [of] journalism without proper permission”
OCI status is given to foreign citizens of Indian origin, or those married to Indian nationals, and allows for visa-free travel, residency and employment in India. Satter received his OCI through marriage.
After his case was listed and heard in the Delhi High Court on 12 March 2025, Satter shared several correspondence with multiple media outlets denying conducting journalism in India, while claiming that he only travelled to the country to visit family. The next hearing of the case is 22 May in which government officials are likely to put out the evidence for cancelling his OCI status.
However, documentary trails seen by The Sunday Guardian indicate that Satter was engaging in journalistic activities while being in India, thereby leading to questions as to why he did not share it with the media outlets covering this development.
As per rules, journalists with OCI cards did not require special permission to work in India until March, 2021.
One of the reasons for the MHA’s 2021 notification, mandating special work permission for OCI journalists, was because of repeated violations of OCI guidelines by foreign journalists who were overseas citizens. Officials said that journalists were turning up in restricted areas, doing clandestine research and reaching out to people without full disclosure and transparency.
As per documents seen by The Sunday Guardian, Satter contacted a student of Appin, Simran, via his official Reuters email ID, and asked her to meet her in Goa. In the chat, he said he was coming to India to attend Nullcon on 6-10 September 2022 and wanted to use his trip to gather information for a story on India’s cybersecurity industry. His specific words were “Hi Simran, This is Raphael Satter with Reuters. I’m headed to attend Nullcon next month and report a piece about the country’s cybersecurity industry. I saw your profile and figured out you would be an interesting person to reach out to. Do you have a moment to chat over the next week or so? Raphael”. Nullcon is Asia’s largest international security conference.
Similarly, after attending Nullcon, Satter wrote to, and later met in a face to face meeting in South Delhi with Appin’s investors Santosh Gadia and Anshuman Khanna of Valpro. He and another Reuters journalist said they were doing an article on India’s cybersecurity industry, specifically covering Appin. They had a long list of questions enquiring about their investment journey in Appin and their exit plans.
As events unfolded after that, Reuters carried the report by Satter, which clearly shows that he indulged in journalistic activities despite not having any permission.
As per the Ministry of Home Affairs notification of 4 March 2021, available publicly, OCI card holders employed in university/establishment/organisation engaging OCI cardholders as research scholars, in journalistic activities, as interns or employees in foreign diplomatic missions/foreign government organisations in India, would need to have the necessary permit in place prior to their engagement date.
The Sunday Guardian sent Satter multiple emails seeking his response on the claims that he did not follow the clear rules that prohibit journalistic activities by an OCI card holder unless previous permission is taken:
“Can you share the timeline of your visit to India? Especially prior to November 2023 when your story on Appin was published?
“The Indian government has accused you of violating guidelines associated with the OCI card including practising journalism without proper permission. Could you elaborate on your activities during your visits to India, specifically addressing these accusations? What evidence can you provide to support your claim that you were solely visiting family and did not engage in journalistic work within India?”
No response, however, was shared by him.
Media reports, quoting his statements shared with them, say that his OCI cancellation was a mistake.
“I believe the decision has been made by mistake or on a misunderstanding. I myself cannot be certain as to why my overseas citizenship was cancelled as no cogent reasons have been provided to me.”
Significantly, Satter’s reporting had come under question after a report filed by him in June 2023 was found to be factually wrong.
Satter’s piece highlighted India as a hub for hackers, a claim not supported by the original reports from the British National Cyber Security Centre and the French cyber watchdog, which did not mention India as a primary concern. Media sites that wrote on this erroneous piece by Satter, accused him of using these reports to further an anti-India narrative, despite India being a primary target of cyber-attacks, with the highest number of attacks in Asia and second globally after the US. As per the original reports, India contributes to only 2.5% to global hacking traffic, with most state-backed hacking originating from other countries.
“The word ‘India’ does not even feature in the two cyber reports. Yet, three-fourth of the story (by Satter) is dedicated to portray India as a center for disruptive hackers, a narrative that Satter has been relentlessly lobbying for through his writings,” one journalist David Hucks wrote.