Why are BBC offices in India being raided? A timeline of events

Raids by Indian tax authorities at the BBC’s offices in Delhi and Mumbai entered the third day on Thursday as federal officials probe the British broadcaster’s financial transactions in a move that has been widely criticised as a crackdown on free speech.

What the government describes as “surveys” come just weeks after the BBC aired a documentary on the 2002 Gujarat riots featuring a UK government assessment that prime minister Narendra Modi was “directly responsible” for the circumstances leading up to violence in which over 1,000 people – many of them Muslims – were killed.

Last year India’s Supreme Court cleared Mr Modi of wrongdoing over the riots, with previous investigations finding there was insufficient evidence to prosecute him over allegations that he ordered police to step aside and let the riots play out.

The BBC has defended its production and said it adheres to the highest editorial standards. It has also said that it is cooperating with government agencies as the raids continue.

Here is a timeline of how events leading up to and including this week’s raids:

17 January: BBC airs the first instalment of its two-part documentary “India: The Modi Question”.

The two-part documentary, which only aired in the UK, attempts to examine the prime minister’s relationship with Muslims, the country’s largest minority group.

The first part shows a previously unpublished report from the UK Foreign Office that holds Mr Modi “directly responsible” for the “climate of impunity” that enabled the Gujarat violence in 2002 to take place.

Versions of the film were briefly available on YouTube and clips were widely shared on Twitter.

19 January: The documentary is raised in the British parliament, where prime minister Rishi Sunak was asked to respond to its claims by MP Imran Hussain.

Mr Sunak said: “The UK government’s position on this has been clear and long-standing and hasn’t changed, of course, we don’t tolerate persecution where it appears anywhere, but I am not sure I agree at all with the characterisation that the honourable gentleman has put forward [of Mr Modi].”

20 January: India’s government criticises the documentary and calls it a “propaganda piece” that reflects a “continued colonial mindset.”

“Let me just make it very clear that we think this is a propaganda piece designed to push a particular discredited narrative. The bias, the lack of objectivity, and frankly a continuing colonial mindset, are blatantly visible,” said foreign ministry spokesperson Arindam Bagchi.

The same day the BBC defended its production and said that it has abided by the “highest editorial standards”.

22 January: The Indian government blocks the documentary by issuing orders to both YouTube and Twitter to block content related to it using emergency powers under the country’s information and technology laws.

Orders were given to block over 50 tweets linked to the documentary and YouTube was ordered to take down any uploads.

22 January: Students from the University of Hyderabad screened the first part of the documentary on campus, leading to authorities launching a crackdown against them.

Student groups in the leftist stronghold state of Kerala in southern India also announced their decision to screen the series on campuses and public places.

24 January: Chaos ensues at Jawaharlal Nehru University in Delhi after students organised a screening of the BBC documentary.

Power and internet connections were cut off for hours at the leading university, with incidents of stone pelting also reported.

On the same day US State Department spokesperson Ned Price, when asked for his views on the series, said the US and India have an “exceptionally deep partnership” without offering any comments on the documentary.

25 January: Tense scenes were witnessed at another federal institution, after more than a dozen students were detained by police and classes were suspended at Jamia Milia Islamia University in Delhi after the administration denied the screening of any film on the campus.

26 January: Elon Musk denies responsibility for censorship after the social media giant Twitter received widespread criticism for complying with the Indian government’s directive.

“First I’ve heard. It is not possible for me to fix every aspect of Twitter worldwide overnight, while still running Tesla and SpaceX, among other things,” Mr Musk said on Twitter.

27 January: At least 24 people were detained at Delhi University as police stopped members of student political groups from screening the documentary, reported Hindustan Times.

29 January: Protests were held outside the BBC headquarters in London by BJP members.

Protesters said that the documentary falsely shows discrimination against Muslims under Mr Modi.

30 January: India’s Supreme Court agrees to hear pleas challenging the ban on the documentary and lists the matter for 6 February.

A plea was filed by New Delhi-based lawyer ML Sharma who opposed the government’s move while another petition was filed by lawyer Prashant Bhushan, journalist N Ram, and opposition politician Mahua Moitra that focused on the government order to take down social media links to the documentary.

3 February: A Supreme Court bench, while hearing the pleas, issues notices to the federal government and directed it to produce the original records relating to the takedown order in the next hearing scheduled for April.

The court refuses to comment on the action taken against students in various universities and called it a “separate issue”.

10 February: India’s Supreme Court dismisses a petition demanding a ban on the BBC in India and says that it cannot impose censorship.

14 February: India’s tax authorities conduct raids at the BBC’s offices in Mumbai and Delhi.

Officials said that they were looking into documents relating to the company’s business operations.

The BBC confirmed to The Independent that tax agents were present at the corporation’s offices, and said it was “fully cooperating”.

The British Foreign Office also said on the same day that it was closely monitoring the situation. The UK government has issued no other statement on the matter to date.

India’s ruling Bharatiya Janata Party addressed a press conference hours after the raids started and called the BBC “Bhrasht Bhakwaas Corporation” (the “Corrupt Rubbish Corporation”).

“The BBC indulges in anti-India propaganda. India is a country which gives an opportunity to every organisation... as long as you don’t spew venom,” spokesperson Gaurav Bhatia said.

Despite using the press conference to attack the BBC, Mr Bhatia says the country’s tax authorities are an independent institution that should be allowed to conduct its probe before conclusions are drawn.

Opposition parties as well as media watchdog groups including the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), Asia, and Reporters without Borders issued statements condemning the attack on free speech.

15 February: Despite widespread outrage, the raids continued for a second day at the BBC’s offices in Delhi and Mumbai.

Officials referred to the raids as a “survey” and said that they are part of a probe into “deliberate non-compliance with transfer pricing rules” and the BBC’s “vast diversion of profits,” reported Press Trust of India.

It was also to probe “manipulation of prices for unauthorised benefits, including tax advantages”.

The BBC told The Independent that officials remain at their offices and they are cooperating with them.

“Our output and journalism continues as normal and we are committed to serving our audiences in India,” it added.

Amnesty International called the raids an “affront to free speech.”

16 February: As raids continued for a third day, a BBC spokesperson told The Independent that some staff had stayed overnight on 14 February.

“We are cooperating with the ongoing enquiries and hope to have this situation resolved as soon as possible.”

It added that staff were able to enter and leave the offices as needed.

Kanchan Gupta, an adviser to the federal government, told TV channel Times Now that the BBC was served tax notices in the past but had not provided a “convincing response”.

Tax officials said to Press Trust of India that the survey teams are seeking answers on financial transactions, the company structure and other details about the news company, and are copying data from electronic gadgets as part of their task of collecting the evidence.

The Independent has reached out to the federal ministry of Information and Broadcasting as well as the Income Tax Department for comment.