Kochi, Sep 17: The Kerala Police’s Special Investigation Team (SIT) on Wednesday conducted searches at five locations, including the headquarters of Reporter Broadcasting Company (RBC), which houses Malayalam news channel Reporter TV, as part of its probe into alleged financial irregularities linked to the cancelled Lionel Messi-Argentina football event in Kochi.
The searches began around 6 am at the RBC office in Kalamassery in Ernakulam district and were led by Thrikkakara Assistant Commissioner of Police C K Bijoy Chandran.
The residences of RBC Managing Director Anto Augustine, his brothers Roji Augustine and Josekutty Augustine, and administrative head Shah Feena Mehar Ali were also searched.
According to police, the searches were conducted under a court-issued warrant in connection with an FIR registered at the Kalamassery police station.
Police entered the Reporter TV newsroom and seized journalists’ mobile phones, according to the media organisation and journalists’ bodies. The police, however, maintained that the operation was carried out in accordance with the court order and said they had no intention of disrupting newsroom operations.
“Our attempt to serve notice to the RBC administrative authorities to search the administrative office failed as they refused to accept it,” Chandran told reporters.
The SIT is probing alleged financial misconduct, criminal conspiracy and tax evasion related to the proposed visit of the Argentina national football team and its former captain Lionel Messi to Kochi for an exhibition match.
The FIR relates to an alleged criminal conspiracy dating back to 2024 and claims that “illegal and fake” details were incorporated into an agreement with the Argentine Football Association (AFA), police said.
The probe is also examining alleged tax evasion of around Rs 25.78 crore, foreign remittances of approximately Rs 126 crore and a request for exemption from a mandatory Rs 5 crore stadium security deposit.
The proposed exhibition match, which was to feature the 2022 FIFA World Cup-winning Argentina squad and Messi at the Jawaharlal Nehru International Stadium in Kochi, was later cancelled amid contract disputes and funding issues.
The searches drew protests from Opposition Leader Pinarayi Vijayan and the Kerala Union of Working Journalists (KUWJ), who alleged that the police action inside the newsroom amounted to an attack on press freedom.
“The police atrocity was reminiscent of the dark days of the Emergency,” Vijayan said, adding that Kerala would not tolerate an “assault aimed at silencing the media”.
The KUWJ alleged that police officers entered the news desk and seized journalists’ mobile phones, describing the incident as “a media hunt and an assault on democracy”.
RBC also alleged that the police action disrupted the functioning of the newsroom.
Chief Minister V D Satheesan rejected allegations of state-sponsored media censorship and said the SIT was acting on the basis of a legitimate search warrant issued by a magistrate’s court.
The investigation followed concerns over financial discrepancies flagged by the Sports Department, after which the Home Department ordered a comprehensive probe leading to the formation of the SIT.
The Ernakulam Press Club also announced plans to hold a march to the District Police Chief’s office in protest against what it described as an attack on press freedom.The investigation is continuing.
