After Income Tax officials conducted surveys at the Delhi and Mumbai offices of UK-based media house BBC, Opposition leaders have slammed the union government alleging that while they are demanding a Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) probe into the Adani-Hindenburg issue, the BJP-led government has come after the BBC.
The I-T department conducted a survey operation at the BBC offices on Tuesday in relation to alleged tax evasion and irregularities pertaining to international tax and TDS transactions, officials said, reported The Indian Express. In the survey operation, the department only covers the business premises of a company and does not raid residences and other locations of its promoters or directors.
The development comes after BBC released a two-part documentary in January titled ‘India: The Modi Question’. The documentary examined Prime Minister Modi’s alleged role in the 2002 communal riots in Gujarat.
The first part of the documentary was released on January 17, and the second part on January 24. On January 20, the Centre had used emergency powers available under the Information Technology Rules, 2021, to issue directions to YouTube and Twitter to block clips of the documentary.
Using a Hindi idiom, Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh attacked the government, saying “Vinash Kale, Vipreet Buddhi” (When doom approaches, a person’s intellect works against his interest).
“Here we are demanding JPC on the Adani issue but the government is after the BBC. Vinash Kale Viprit Buddhi,” Ramesh said in a video.
Meanwhile, the Congress party in a tweet called the survey an “undeclared emergency”.
“First came the BBC documentary, it was banned, now IT raids were conducted in the BBC office. Undeclared emergency,” a tweet by Congress read.
People’s Democratic Party chief Mehbooba Mufti accused the Centre of “brazenly hounding” those “who speak the truth”.
Meanwhile, Trinamool Congress (TMC) MP Mahua Moitra hit out at the Centre, and tweeted, “Reports of Income Tax raid at BBC’s Delhi office. Wow, really? How unexpected… Meanwhile, farsaan seva for Adani (Adani is served a Gujarati snack) when he drops in for a chat with Chairman @SEBI_India office. (sic)”
Congress leader and Vadgam MLA Jignesh Mevani tweeted, “Adani’s office in Delhi being surveyed by the IT department. Phones of all employees siezed. Sorry it’s BBC!”
Further, tweeting a picture of news reports on the I-T surveys, Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) leader Y Sathish Reddy, said “Modi gift to BBC”.