The Income Tax department continued a survey operation at BBC India offices for a second day on Wednesday, clocking over 34 hours in total. Taxemen sought explanations from select staffers and collected electronic and paper-based financial data, officials said.
The I-T officials launched the action on Tuesday at the BBC’s Delhi and Mumbai offices along with at least two linked premises as part of an investigation into alleged tax evasion by the British broadcaster in India.
Updating on the situation late on Tuesday, the BBC said that the I-T authorities “remain at the BBC offices”. The Income Tax officials described the action as part of an investigation into alleged tax evasion. Sources said that the officials checked account details dating as far back as 2012.
They added that the surveys were being carried out to investigate issues related to international taxation and transfer pricing of BBC subsidiary companies, and alleged that the broadcaster was served with notices in the past, but was “defiant and non-compliant” and had significantly diverted its profits.
Initially, when the officials arrived at the BBC offices, it was said that a “raid” was being conducted. However, sleuths later insisted that “this was a survey”, and not a search. They added that the seized phones would be returned.
“Before the survey, a ‘satisfactory note’ was prepared and the same was looked into by top I-T officials. It is not necessary that the allegations need to be serious to conduct a survey. Survey is conducted under section 133A of the Income Tax act,” sources told News18. They further said that the data at BBC is voluminous and is thus taking time. “Survey is conducted to look into the books of accounts of BBC,” sources added.
Sleuths knocked at the doors of the BBC around 11:30 AM on Tuesday and they are still present, sources said.
A BBC spokesperson said that they hoped “the situation is resolved as soon as possible”. By late evening, the spokesperson updated that many staff had left the building “but some have been asked to remain and are continuing to cooperate with the ongoing enquiries”.
The BBC said it was “supporting” the staff and “continue to hope to have this situation resolved as soon as possible”. “Our output and journalism continue as normal and we are committed to serving our audiences in India,” it said.
What Happened During Tax Survey at BBC Offices
The tax officials are speaking to staffers of the BBC in the finance and some other departments even as other staffers and journalists were allowed to leave Tuesday night. Some computer peripherals and mobile phones were cloned as part of the operation, officials had said.
The I-T officials on Tuesday seized and phones and laptops of journalists. Reports stated that visuals showed some employees arguing with the officials.
A report in NDTV quoted a BBC journalist as saying that the officials used the keyword “tax” to search for information on the desktops after asking employees to log in.
BBC, in an ’emergency message’ to the staff, asked those not in office to stay away. It has also asked its staff to avoid commenting on social media on the searches.
The IT action against the BBC comes weeks after the broadcaster aired a controversial two-part documentary – “India: The Modi Question”- on Prime Minister Narendra Modi and 2002 Gujarat riots.
The Indian government has branded the two-part series a “propaganda piece”, designed to push a particular “discredited narrative”.
How is the World Reacting
• The United States said it is aware of the survey operation conducted by the Indian tax authorities at the BBC office in Delhi but is not in a position to offer its judgement. “We are aware of the search of the BBC offices in Delhi by Indian tax authorities. I would need to refer you to Indian authorities for the details of this search. Beyond this discrete action, what I’ll say more broadly is the general point that I’ve consistently made in this context, but in a universal context as well,” State Department Spokesperson Ned Price told reporters in Washington.
• The UK government is “closely monitoring” the situation as the BBC said some of its staff have been asked to remain at their Delhi and Mumbai offices to cooperate with the “ongoing enquiries” of the Income Tax authorities. While there has been no official statement related to the action, British government sources said they are “closely monitoring reports of tax surveys conducted at the offices of the BBC in India”.
• The New York-based independent non-profit Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) urged the Indian government to “stop harassing” journalists. Its Asia programme coordinator Beh Lih Yi said: “Raiding the BBC’s India offices in the wake of a documentary criticising Prime Minister Narendra Modi smacks of intimidation”.
• Amnesty International tweeted: “These raids are a blatant affront to freedom of expression.”
• The South Asia Solidarity Group, a human rights organisation based in the UK, dubbed it a “blatantly vindictive move”.
How is India Reacting
Opposition
• Targeting the BJP, Chhattisgarh chief minister Bhupesh Baghel said it shows whosoever raises voice against the central government will be crushed. “Whoever speaks against the central government they will be crushed. Be it Congress or any regional party, they have to face the heat of the central government for speaking against them. Whenever Congress leaders went to other states for poll campaign, there were raided by IT, ED and DRI in Chhattisgarh. Now by taking action against the BBC, a message is being given to media houses that you cannot speak against us,” he said.
• Shiv Sena (UBT) Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Raut on Tuesday said democracy in India is facing trouble. He said the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), in its earlier avatar as the Bharatiya Jana Sangh (BJS), had opposed the Emergency (1975-77), but the same outfit is now targeting the judiciary and the media.
• Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar on Tuesday parried questions on the Income Tax department’s survey operations. “Vo to chalta rahna hai (such things do keep taking place)”, wearily said Kumar, who has been pitching for “opposition unity” in the 2024 Lok Sabha polls.
• Tamil Nadu chief minister M K Stalin hit out at the BJP-led Union government and said people are silently watching and they would teach the Saffron party a ‘fitting lesson’ in the impending elections. “Transparent and independent institutions are vital for any vibrant democracy. However, under the present BJP-led central government, the nation’s prestigious institutions have become arbitrary and completely lost independence,” he said.
Ruling BJP
• Information and Broadcasting Minister Anurag Thakur said no one was above the law and the Income Tax department would share details about the survey it had carried out at the offices of BBC in New Delhi and Mumbai.
• The BJP accused the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) of unleashing “venomous” reporting against India and alleged that it is a “most corrupt corporation” whose propaganda and the Congress’ agenda go together.
Addressing a press conference soon after the Income Tax survey operations at the British broadcaster’s offices in Mumbai and Delhi, BJP national spokesperson Gaurav Bhatia asserted that the action was lawful. “If any agency or company operates in India whether it is connected to media or other work, it will have to abide by the local laws,” he said.
Other Reactions
• The Mumbai Press Club has “strongly condemned” the survey. “Media houses have been continuously attacked for refusing to follow the government’s perspective In recent days, we have seen a series of coordinated income tax raids on the offices of Dainik Bhaskar Group, UP-based TV network Bharat Live, and news portals such as Newsclick and Newslaundry, among others,” the press club said in statement. It added that not only have company offices and promoters’ homes been raided, but the homes of editors and ordinary journalists, too, have not been spared.
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