Tax raids at BBC India offices enter second day

NEW DELHI: Indian tax department raids at BBC offices entered a second day on Wednesday, journalists at the broadcaster told AFP, in an action rights groups linked to critical coverage of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Press freedom in the world´s biggest democracy has suffered during Modi´s tenure, rights activists say. The government has denied the raids were politically motivated but a spokesman for his ruling party accused the British outlet of engaging in “anti-India propaganda” after the raids began.

The search comes weeks after the BBC aired a documentary on his actions during sectarian riots in 2002 that left at least 1,000 people dead, mostly minority Muslims. Officers entered the New Delhi and Mumbai offices of the British media outlet on Tuesday morning, confiscating phones and accessing computer terminals.

Authorities were questioning individual staff members on Wednesday after allowing editorial staff to leave the previous evening. “They are questioning the administrative managers after scanning all the digital devices,” a journalist at the broadcaster told AFP, requesting anonymity because they were not authorised to speak to the media.

The BBC asked staff to work from home and only key persons were allowed to return to the office, which has been sealed to unauthorised visitors since Tuesday.