The BBC will not be put off from reporting without fear or favour, Director General Tim Davie has said in an email to staff in India, few days after the British government strongly defended the public broadcaster and its editorial freedom in Parliament, after the Income-Tax department's survey operations on the UK-headquartered media corporation's New Delhi and Mumbai offices over three days last week.
According to a report by BBC, Mr Davie thanked staff for their courage and said nothing was more important than reporting impartially. "I'd like to be clear: the BBC does not have an agenda - we are driven by purpose. And our first public purpose is to provide impartial news and information to help people understand and engage with the world around them," he said in the email.
He also said that he would help the staff do their jobs effectively and safely.
"Our duty to our audiences around the world is to pursue the facts through independent and impartial journalism, and to produce and distribute the very best creative content. We won't be put off from that task," he further said.
Tax officials conducted a "survey" at BBC offices for three days. The Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) earlier issued a statement without naming the media organisation and said that the income and profits shown by various BBC group entities are not commensurate with the scale of their operations in India.
The IT officials' visit came in the wake of the BBC documentary on Prime Minister Narendra Modi and 2002 Gujarat Riots that criticised Modi and was banned by the Modi government.
(With inputs from PTI)
