Indian officials probe BBC for 3rd day, alleging tax dodge

By PIYUSH NAGPAL and ASHOK SHARMA
Associated Press

NEW DELHI (AP) — India’s tax officials are searching the BBC offices in New Delhi and Mumbai for a third straight day seeking information about the organization’s business operations amid allegations of tax evasion. Some news staff members were questioned overnight, but the tax officials restricted themselves to the company’s business executives and their offices on Thursday. Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s critics questioned the timing of the searches, which came weeks after the BBC aired a documentary critical of Modi in the U.K. Kanchan Gupta, an adviser to India’s Information and Broadcasting Ministry, said there was no connection between the two. He said the tax laws apply equally to everybody and those found in violation of the tax laws are subject to action.