“We hope to have this case resolved as quickly as doable,” the spokesperson stated.

London:

The UK is “carefully monitoring” the scenario following the Revenue Tax surveys on the BBC workplaces in India, British authorities sources right here stated at present.

The Revenue Tax division performed 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 stated that it was “totally cooperating” with the authorities and hoped that the scenario will probably be resolved “as quickly as doable”.

Whereas there was no official assertion from the UK authorities associated to the motion, British sources stated they’re “carefully monitoring” reviews of tax surveys performed on the workplaces of the BBC in India.

In New Delhi, officers stated the survey was being carried out to research points associated to worldwide taxation and switch pricing of BBC subsidiary corporations, and alleged that the BBC had been served with notices up to now 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 Revenue Tax Authorities are at the moment on the BBC workplaces in New Delhi and Mumbai and we’re totally cooperating,” a BBC spokesperson stated in an announcement.

“We hope to have this case resolved as quickly as doable,” the spokesperson stated.

The BBC didn’t give additional particulars of what has been described as “surveys” by the Revenue Tax (IT) division, which reportedly concerned native BBC workers being prevented from leaving or coming 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 present’s tax survey, because it’s being referred to as, is a retaliation to the latest BBC documentary ‘The Modi Query’,” stated Dr Mukulika Banerjee, a number one creator and educational on the London Faculty of Economics (LSE).

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

“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 primary 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 seems to be 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,” stated Mukti Shah, spokesperson for the group.

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

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

The Indian authorities has branded the two-part sequence 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) stated 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 “unbiased in its outlet” and reiterating its dedication to reinforce 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 unbiased in its output, that the UK regards India as an extremely vital worldwide companion and that we’ll be investing closely in that relationship within the coming a long time,” UK International Secretary James Cleverly stated earlier this month.

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

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

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