A Special Investigation Team of Kerala Police is conducting raids on at least five different properties liked to Reporter Broadcasting Corporation, including the Reporter TV officer and the residence of its partners.
The investigation is linked to the alleged financial irregularities surrounding the cancelled proposed visit of football superstar Lionel Messi in the state.
The searches are being carried out under a court order and are being headed by ADGP P Vijayan.
The operation covered five locations, including the Kochi and Wayanad residences of Augustine brothers Anto Augustine and Joskutty Augustine, who head Reporter Broadcasting Company, the headquarters of Reporter TV at Kalamassery and the office of GOTAD.
The Kalamassery office was searched at around 4 am on Wednesday, and the team reached the Channel office around 6 am.
The police team left the headquarters after an hour without searching as the administrative wing was not open in the early hours.
Reporter Broadcasting Company alleged that the phones belonging to the staff were seized during the raids. They said that police personnel barged into its newsroom and tried to disrupt the broadcast of live news early on Wednesday.
The channel also claimed that the court did not authorise a search of the newsroom.
They alleged that despite this, they entered the news desk where journalists and technical staff were working.
They said that the mobile phones were seized to disrupt the channel's broadcast.
Police, however, said that they did not disrupt the broadcast.
The Assistant Commissioner of Police who led the team that entered the Reporter TV office clarified that they did not know it was the newsroom.
ADGP (Law and Order) P. Vijayan said, "This was only a preliminary inquiry, based on the report received by the government. Our initial assessment is that a crime has taken place. An FIR has been registered at Kalamassery in connection with the alleged fraud carried out in the name of footballer Messi. The inspection at Reporter TV’s office in Kalamassery was part of that preliminary investigation. The search was conducted only after obtaining a search warrant from the magistrate. No mobile phone was seized from any journalist during the inspection. We only asked them to keep the phones aside; they were not taken into custody."
The SIT registered an FIR at Kalamassery police station on charge son Cheating, fraud, and conspiracy in connection with the plans to bring the Argentina team and Messi to Kerala.
Former Chief Minister and Leader of Opposition in the Kerala Assembly Pinarayi Vijayan condemned the raid on the news desk. He said the action by the Kerala Police in forcibly entering the news desk at Reporter TV headquarters created an atmosphere of “terror” at the newsroom for nearly one-and-a-half hours and alleged that the journalists were also filmed.
“Keralam will not tolerate this act of aggression aimed at silencing the media,” Vijayan said. He also demanded answers from the Chief Minister and Home Minister.
He added that the the action was a “despicable assault on press freedom.”
The SIT estimated that the news broadcast channel was involved in a total tax evasion of Rs 25.78 crore.
Rs 22.68 crore relates to IGST that was allegedly not paid under the Reverse Charge Mechanism (RCM) on foreign payments made to the Argentina Football Association (AFA).
A 50-page report by the SIT said that the Rs 126 crore was remitted by Reporter Broadcasting Company to a foreign entity in two instalments in 2025. Of this, Rs 77.16 crore was transferred in June and the balance in November.
