U.S. journalist Raphael Satter has initiated legal proceedings against the Indian government following the revocation of his Overseas Citizen of India (OCI) status, which occurred after he published a critical article about a well-known Indian businessman. This incident was reported by The Guardian on March 13. The lawsuit centers on Satter, a cybersecurity journalist for Reuters, who was accused by India’s Ministry of Home Affairs in December 2023 of disseminating information that allegedly tarnished India’s image, leading to the cancellation of his OCI card. This action coincided with a defamation lawsuit filed against him in India related to his article on Appin, a cybersecurity firm, and its co-founder, Rajat Khare. In the piece titled “How an Indian startup hacked the world,” Satter alleged that Appin was involved in the theft of sensitive information from high-profile individuals, including executives, politicians, military personnel, and affluent citizens globally.
While Khare has denied any wrongdoing, he has also pursued legal action against various media outlets, such as The New Yorker and The Sunday Times, regarding their coverage of Appin’s activities. During his investigation into Appin, Satter encountered multiple threats, including a warning that “diplomatic action” could be taken if he did not cease his reporting. Nevertheless, he persisted in his inquiry, which indicated that Appin was implicated in hacking both domestic and international entities. In response to the revocation of his OCI card, Satter articulated that the Indian government’s decision had effectively severed his ties to his family and a nation he holds in high regard. He characterized the action as a “mistake or misunderstanding” and noted that he only pursued legal recourse after a year of unanswered appeals. He remains optimistic that once his journalistic work is validated by Indian courts, his OCI status will be restored. The Indian government has a history of revoking OCI cards, with over 100 such revocations occurring in the past decade, including that of journalist Aatish Taseer in 2019 after he criticized Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Time magazine.
