Alex Ellis, British High Commissioner to India, spoke on the BBC and Oxfam India row
New Delhi:
British organisations that are working in other nations must follow the laws of those countries, the UK’s top diplomat in India told NDTV today, days after Indian authorities investigated the BBC and Oxfam India for alleged violation of foreign funding rules.
The Enforcement Directorate has filed a case against BBC India under the Foreign Exchange Management Act, which deals with how organisations in India can receive funds from abroad.
The authorities are also investigating Oxfam India, an offshoot of the British-founded non-profit, after the government alleged the charity had violated foreign funding regulations.
Alex Ellis, British High Commissioner to India, said they are aware of these cases but can’t go into the particulars of the Oxfam India case.
“The UK is home to some of the globally respected institutions. BBC is one, which has to respect the laws of the country in which they are in. That’s clear,” Mr Ellis told NDTV.
“I know that the Indian authorities have been talking to Oxfam and BBC. That’s for them to deal with. But the important thing is they respect the laws of the land,” he said.
Investigators have alleged Oxfam India received Rs 1.5 crore directly into its ‘foreign contribution utilisation account’ instead of the designated bank account between 2013 and 2016. They alleged Oxfam India has the reach and influence to request multilateral foreign organisations to intervene on its behalf with the government of India.
The complaint filed by the investigators with the Home Ministry also alleged Oxfam India routed Rs 12.71 lakh to the Centre for Policy Research, another non-profit think tank, in the financial year 2019-20 in violation of the Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Act, 2010.
When asked about the Oxfam India matter, Mr Ellis told NDTV, “I am not going into the particulars of the case. Of course we talk to the Indian authorities about many issues. But I couldn’t say much more than that.”
The BBC in January ran a docuseries on Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the 2002 Gujarat riots, titled “India: The Modi Question”. The government had strongly condemned the BBC series as a “propaganda piece designed to push a discredited narrative” that should not be “dignified” with a response.
A month later, the income tax department surveyed the BBC and sent its teams to the broadcaster’s offices in Delhi and Mumbai over allegations of irregularities in taxes, diversion of profits and non-compliance with rules.
During the survey, senior BBC staffers had to stay in the office overnight to respond to questions.
