The US state department on Tuesday avoided commenting directly on the income tax survey at the Delhi and Mumbai offices of the BBC but stressed how free media strengthens democracies everywhere including India.
Asked if the state department had any comment on “tax investigators raiding the BBC office”, spokesman Ned Price said: “We’re aware of the search of the BBC offices in Delhi by Indian tax authorities. I would need to refer you to Indian authorities for the details of this search. Beyond this discrete action, what I’ll say more broadly is the general point that I’ve consistently made in this context but in the universal context as well.
“We support the importance of free press around the world. We continue to highlight the importance of freedom of expression and freedom of religion or belief as human rights that contribute to strengthening democracies around the world. It has strengthened this democracy here in this country; it has strengthened India’s democracy. These universal rights are the bedrock of democracies around the world.”
When the reporter persisted, asking if the income tax action on the BBC went against what he had said on press freedom, Price again side-stepped: “I couldn’t say. I couldn’t say. We’re aware that these — we are aware of the fact of the searches, but I’m just not in a position to offer a judgement.”
At the White House briefing, spokesperson Karine JeanPierre also steered clear of commenting on whether the President’s office had any reaction to the “documentary that the Indian Prime Minister censored”, which preceded the surveys. Her response was: “I don’t have a reaction to that for you from here.”
Earlier in the day, US President Joe Biden had spoken to Prime Minister Narendra Modi after Air India signed a record aircraft deal with Airbus and Boeing for 470 planes. Biden, in a statement, lauded the deal under which Air India will buy 200 American-made aircraft from Boeing. “This purchase will support over one million American jobs across 44 states, and many will not require a fouryear college degree,” Biden said.
