The officials, who asked not to be named, said that a few executives including a deputy managing editor of the BBC have already been called to the ED office in past two weeks to record their statement and the company has been asked to submit certain documents related to its finances. They said the issue pertains to violations of the Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA) and that the investigation is based on the findings of the tax department’s survey.

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) is investigating violations of foreign exchange rules by the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC), government officials familiar with the matter said on Thursday, indicating that the regulatory troubles of the media company, which was surveyed by the Income Tax department in February, are far from over.

The BBC is yet to respond to an email query from HT.

In February, a BBC spokesperson said the company would continue to cooperate with authorities and hope matters are resolved as soon as possible.

The survey at BBC came a month after the channel aired, outside India, a two-part documentary on the Gujarat riots of 2002, pointing to the role of the state’s then chief minister and current Prime Minister Narendra Modi. To be sure, Modi has been cleared of any wrongdoing by an investigating team monitored by the Supreme Court.

“It makes us wonder about the purpose of this exercise and the agenda behind it. This is a propaganda piece designed to push a particular discredited narrative. The bias, the lack of objectivity, and a continuing colonial mindset is blatantly visible,” the ministry of external affairs spokesperson Arindam Bagchi said in January when asked to comment on the documentary.


ED begins probe against BBC over ‘FDI law breach’