BBC raids show India's shrinking media freedom under Modi, some journalists say

FILE PHOTO: Police officers stand outside a building having BBC offices, where income tax officials are conducting a search, in New Delhi, India, February 14, 2023. REUTERS/Anushree Fadnavis

NEW DELHI (Reuters) - At around 11 a.m. on Feb 14, some 20 Indian tax officials and police burst into the BBC's offices in New Delhi, shouting at staff to step away from their computers and hand over their mobile phones, according to two people present.

At the company's bureau in India's financial capital, Mumbai, tax officials launched a second raid. The government said the BBC had failed to respond to repeated requests to clarify its tax affairs related to the profits and remittances from its Indian operations.