As Income Tax Department's survey continues at BBC offices for the third consecutive day, Vice-President Jagdeep Dhankhar said there's a need to counter "doctored narratives" that seek to "run down" India’s growth story. He said while addressing a group of Indian information service probationers on Thursday.

Dhankhar's statement came amid a "survey" being conducted by the Tax Department at the Delhi and Mumbai offices of BBC India. The Income Tax official started the survey early Tuesday as part of an investigation into alleged tax evasion and transfer pricing irregularities. The operation has now clocked more than 45 hours. Authorities were quoted by PTI saying that the exercise would continue for some more time.

The timing of the survey has been questioned by the Opposition as the operation came weeks after the broadcaster aired a two-part documentary "India: The Modi Question" on Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the 2002 Gujarat riots. On January 21, the government issued directions to block multiple YouTube videos and Twitter posts sharing links to the documentary.

In the wake of the controversy around the BBC, Dhankhar said, "Sinister designs are there to set a narrative by free-fall of information". He urged citizens to be alert, saying that "this is another way of invasion".

"We have to boldly neutralise it. We have to instill in us the spirit of nationalism. We cannot allow the free-fall of doctored narratives to run down our growth story," Dhankhar said.

Meanwhile, there has been no official statement from the Income Tax department on the action, the BBC has said it was "fully cooperating" with the authorities. A BBC staffer in Delhi said they were broadcasting their news like usual.

First Published:Feb 16, 2023 1:04 PM IST