UK ‘Intently Monitoring’ Tax Surveys At BBC Places of work: Report

“We hope to have this example resolved as quickly as attainable,” the spokesperson mentioned.

London:

The UK is “intently monitoring” the scenario following the Earnings Tax surveys on the BBC workplaces in India, British authorities sources right here mentioned at this time.

The Earnings Tax division carried out survey operations on the BBC’s workplaces in Delhi and Mumbai on Tuesday with the officers describing the motion as a part of an investigation into alleged tax evasion.

Reacting to the Indian IT division’s motion, the UK-based British public broadcaster mentioned that it was “absolutely cooperating” with the authorities and hoped that the scenario shall be resolved “as quickly as attainable”.

Whereas there was no official assertion from the UK authorities associated to the motion, British sources mentioned they’re “intently monitoring” experiences of tax surveys carried out on the workplaces of the BBC in India.

In New Delhi, officers mentioned the survey was being carried out to analyze points associated to worldwide taxation and switch pricing of BBC subsidiary firms, and alleged that the BBC had been served with notices previously however was “defiant and non-compliant” and had considerably diverted its earnings.

The IT motion in opposition to the BBC comes weeks after the broadcaster aired a controversial two-part documentary -“India: The Modi Query”- on Prime Minister Narendra Modi and 2002 Gujarat riots.

“The Earnings Tax Authorities are at present on the BBC workplaces in New Delhi and Mumbai and we’re absolutely cooperating,” a BBC spokesperson mentioned in an announcement.

“We hope to have this example resolved as quickly as attainable,” the spokesperson mentioned.

The BBC didn’t give additional particulars of what has been described as “surveys” by the Earnings Tax (IT) division, which reportedly concerned native BBC workers being prevented from leaving or getting into the workplace premises and their cellphones and different devices being seized.

In the meantime, there was shock within the UK as information of the motion unfolded early on Tuesday morning and a broad consensus has been that the motion was linked to the controversial BBC documentary aired within the UK final month.

“Everybody’s shocked and nobody is fooled that at this time’s tax survey, because it’s being referred to as, is a retaliation to the current BBC documentary ‘The Modi Query’,” mentioned Dr Mukulika Banerjee, a number one writer and tutorial on the London Faculty of Economics (LSE).

“The BBC is an impartial public broadcaster so if it places out a documentary, it’s not performing on the behest of the British authorities. In actual fact, BBC journalists routinely grill the British PM and all elected officers holding them accountable for his or her actions. The phrase ‘impartial’ means simply that,” she mentioned.

“Lastly, the Indian authorities has appointed India because the ‘Mom of Democracy’ throughout its yr of the G20 Presidency and plastered posters throughout each inch of the nation proclaiming that. It ought to know then that one of many fundamental ideas of being a democracy is to recognise that press freedom is a vital central pillar of a functioning democracy. They really want to know that that is what press freedom appears like. And cease its shameful harassment of the BBC in Delhi and Mumbai,” she added.

The South Asia Solidarity Group, a human rights organisation based mostly within the UK, dubbed it a “blatantly vindictive transfer”.

“Within the wake of the federal government’s ban on sharing extracts or screening the documentary, this raid makes it clear that the Modi authorities will assault all those that criticise Narendra Modi, the BJP and people near them,” mentioned Mukti Shah, spokesperson for the group.

In the meantime, there have been others such because the World Hindu Federation which expressed assist for the motion.

“As a ‘coloniser collaborator’ the BBC has been residing lease free in our heads, and little question monetary irregularities abound of their ongoing occupation of the India media house,” mentioned the federation’s chair Satish Sharma.

The Indian authorities has branded the two-part collection a “propaganda piece”, designed to push a selected “discredited narrative”.

“The bias, lack of objectivity and persevering with colonial mindset is blatantly seen,” the Ministry of Exterior Affairs (MEA) mentioned on the time it was aired within the UK final month.

The documentary additionally triggered coordinated Indian diaspora protests at BBC workplaces throughout totally different UK cities on the finish of final month.

The UK authorities responded within the Home of Commons to the protests by insisting the BBC as a media organisation was “impartial in its outlet” and reiterating its dedication to boost ties with India.

“We recognise how this portrayal of the Indian authorities has performed out in India. I made it clear that the BBC is impartial in its output, that the UK regards India as an extremely vital worldwide accomplice and that we are going to be investing closely in that relationship within the coming a long time,” UK Overseas Secretary James Cleverly mentioned earlier this month.

His remarks have been later echoed by British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak’s official spokesperson in Downing Avenue: “The BBC is impartial in its output and we’d stress that we proceed to treat India as an extremely vital worldwide accomplice.

“We shall be investing closely in our relationship with India over the approaching a long time and we’re assured it would solely go from energy to energy.”

(Apart from the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV workers and is printed from a syndicated feed.)