image source, @DrSJaishankar
British Foreign Minister James Cleverley in Delhi Indian Foreign Minister S. He told the Reuters news agency that when he met Jaishankar, he raised the issue of the investigation conducted by the Income Tax Department at the BBC’s Mumbai and Delhi offices.
In response, “the British Minister was asked to ensure that all companies operating in India fully comply with the laws and regulations in force in the country,” Indian Minister S. ANI news agency reported quoting Jaishankar.
Last month, India’s income tax officials visited the BBC offices in Delhi and Mumbai in the name of investigation into the company’s financial transactions. As part of this operation, the Income Tax officials cloned the data on digital devices of some senior officials.
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Ahead of the G20 Foreign Ministers meeting on Friday, India’s Foreign Minister S. British Minister James Cleverly met Jaishankar. However, he did not share other details of his conversation with the Indian minister to the media.
“It is better to keep the things I have discussed with the Indian minister only with him. I have raised that matter (the issue of investigation at the BBC office),” he told Reuters in an interview.
“When I asked him what was the benefit of having such a strong and professional relationship with Jaishankar, he talked to me about some of the subtle issues I raised with him, which I raised with him,” James Cleverly said.
The British minister added that the meeting was about the negative activities of both sides.
Speaking about the hallmark of a positive relationship, Minister James noted that “while discussing a delicate and difficult issue, it doesn’t derail us from talking about real, positive things.”
Asked if there were concerns about civil rights in India, Minister James Cleverly replied, “We want to make sure that the values that both countries feel strongly about are upheld, which is to work together on a range of issues.”
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Recently, the BBC aired a documentary on Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi for viewers in the UK to watch only in that country.
The documentary was uploaded by many people in an unauthorized manner and shared through social media. Subsequently, the Indian government tried to prevent the documentary from being seen in India.
A few weeks after this happened, a team from the Income Tax Department visited the BBC offices in Delhi and Mumbai and inspected the BBC’s financial records in the name of inspection. The Income Tax Department, which conducted the investigation over three consecutive days, also questioned senior BBC officials and journalists.
Following this, India’s Central Board of Direct Taxes issued a press release saying that its investigation had found evidence of ‘inconsistencies’ in PBC transactions.
However, the department did not send any letter or notice to the BBC after the investigation.
The BBC had said at the time that it would respond appropriately to official messages received directly from the Income Tax Department.
This issue also echoed in the British Parliament last month. Opposition MPs expressed concern over the Income Tax department’s action against the BBC’s Indian offices.
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The British Foreign Secretary, who was present in the House at the time, did not comment on the Indian Income Tax Department’s allegations, but said he was closely monitoring events in India and fully supported the BBC’s independent journalism.
BBC Director General Email
Tim Davey, Director-General – BBC
In an email to BBC staff days after the investigation, director-general Tim Davey thanked BBC staff for their “bravery. Nothing is more important than impartial reporting”.
The BBC, which cooperates with the Income Tax Department’s investigation, recently aired a documentary critical of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
“Our duty to our audiences around the world is to report the truth through independent and impartial journalism, produced and distributed with the best creative content. We will not shy away from that mission.”
“I want to make this clear: the BBC has no agenda – we are driven by a purpose. The first of which is the general purpose of providing impartial news and information to help people understand and connect with the world around them,” noted Tim Davey.
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