A BBC spokesperson said, “The BBC is committed to operating within the rules of all countries we are based in, including India. At this stage, neither BBC World Service India nor its directors have received any Adjudication Order from the Enforcement Directorate.”TWO YEARS after registering a case against British Broadcasting Company (BBC) India under the Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA) for alleged foreign exchange violations, the Enforcement Directorate Friday issued an adjudication order, levying a penalty of Rs 3.44 crore on the broadcaster. The agency has also imposed a fine of Rs 1.14 crore each on three BBC directors.The ED lodged the case following Income-Tax Department surveys at the BBC premises in New Delhi and Mumbai in February 2023 for alleged “non-compliance” with transfer pricing rules and diversion of profits.A BBC spokesperson said, “The BBC is committed to operating within the rules of all countries we are based in, including India. At this stage, neither BBC World Service India nor its directors have received any Adjudication Order from the Enforcement Directorate.”“We will carefully review any order when it is received and consider next steps as appropriate,” the spokesperson said.On the penalties imposed by the ED, an official said, “Apart from levying a penalty of Rs 3,44,48,850 on BBC WS India, a fine of Rs 5,000 for each day has been imposed from October 15, 2021 till the date of compliance. Also, three directors — Giles Antony Hunt, Indu Shekhar Sinha and Paul Michael Gibbons — have each been fined Rs 1,14,82,950 for their roles in overseeing company operations during the period of contravention.”“The adjudication proceedings were initiated after a showcause notice was issued on August 4, 2023 to BBC WS India, its three directors, and the finance head, for the contraventions,” the official said.On the alleged violations, the official said, “On September 18, 2019, DPIIT issued a press note, stipulating a 26 per cent FDI cap for digital media under the government approval route. However, BBC WS India, which is a 100 per cent FDI company engaged in uploading/streaming news and current affairs through digital media, did not reduce their FDI to 26 per cent, and kept it at 100 per cent in gross violation of regulations issued by the government.”Story continues below this adThe tax department’s action came after the British broadcaster on January 17, 2023, released a documentary on the 2002 Gujarat riots titled “India: The Modi Question”. On January 20, the Centre ordered YouTube and Twitter to take down links sharing the documentary, with officials saying it was found to be “undermining the sovereignty and integrity of India”.After three days of surveys in February 2023, the I-T Department had said that it had found “several discrepancies and inconsistencies with regard to transfer pricing documentation”. It also said the income and profits shown by various BBC group entities are “not commensurate with the scale of operations” in India.Mahender Singh Manral is an Assistant Editor with the national bureau of The Indian Express. He is known for his impactful and breaking stories. He covers the Ministry of Home Affairs, Investigative Agencies, National Investigative Agency, Central Bureau of Investigation, Law Enforcement Agencies, Paramilitary Forces, and internal security. Prior to this, Manral had extensively reported on city-based crime stories along with that he also covered the anti-corruption branch of the Delhi government for a decade. He is known for his knack for News and a detailed understanding of stories. He also worked with Mail Today as a senior correspondent for eleven months. He has also worked with The Pioneer for two years where he was exclusively covering crime beat. During his initial days of the career he also worked with The Statesman newspaper in the national capital, where he was entrusted with beats like crime, education, and the Delhi Jal Board. A graduate in Mass Communication, Manral is always in search of stories that impact lives. ... Read More© The Indian Express Pvt LtdTags:bbc