On Saturday, the Income Tax department froze the bank accounts of Jai Hind television channel, the Congress’s mouthpiece in Kerala. An office-bearer of the channel said the I-T department had said that a mismatch in filing outstanding tax demands led them to take the “extraordinary step”.
Leader of the Opposition V.D. Satheesan told The Hindu that the attempt to hobble the Congress’s organ was another instance of the BJP-led Union government trying to subvert constitutional agencies to stifle dissent. He said the effort to disrupt the channel’s daily operations smacked of authoritarianism and condemned the move as patently anti-democratic.
Jai Hind managing director B.S. Shibu said the action appeared out of the blue and had been hasty. The channel was litigating the settlement of tax arrears in several courts. The current action seemed rash and politically motivated.
The action against Jai Hind came soon after the Centre’s decision to freeze Congress’s main bank accounts. Congress treasurer Ajay Maken had condemned the move and said the BJP arm-twisted the I-T department into freezing the coffers of Opposition parties ahead of the Lok Sabha polls.
