Income tax officials raid multiple locations related to leading media house

Tribune News Service

New Delhi, July 22

Income Tax department officials have been conducting searches at multiple locations across the country of leading media house Dainik Bhaskar group, including its headquarters in Bhopal, Raipur, Jaipur, Ahmedabad and Delhi, as well as Uttar Pradesh-based TV channel Bharat Samachar for alleged tax evasion.  

Sources in the I-T department, while confirming about the raids, said search operations are under way at Bhopal and Indore in Madhya Pradesh, Jaipur in Rajasthan and Ahmedabad in Gujarat, Delhi and a few locations in Maharashtra.

I-T sleuths are searching the business premises as well as residential premises of the promoters of the Bhaskar Group in Madhya Pradesh, sources said, adding that raids are being carried out following a tip-off about tax evasions by the media company.

Dainik Bhaskar group is one of the largest media groups in the country with more than 60 editions operating in a dozen states in multiple languages.

Dainik Bhaskar had put out a series of reports that took a critical view of the official claims during the pandemic, particularly in Uttar Pradesh, where dead bodies were seen on the banks of the Ganges and also seen floating in the river.

Meanwhile, sources said the premises of Uttar Pradesh-based TV channel Bharat Samachar and its promoters and staffers were raided in Lucknow.

Bharat Samachar TV channel has also been critical of the Covid-19 management in the country. The channel said on its official Twitter handle that searches are being conducted at the "house of its Editor-in-chief Brajesh Mishra, state head Virendra Singh, houses of some employees and the channel office". With PTI