Indian Media Houses Find a Spot in the Paradise Papers Leak

Apart from Network 18, the other names in the list are the Hindustan Times Group and the Zee Media group.

Zee’s Subhash Chandra, and the Hindustan Times Group’s Shobhana Bhartia.

(Photo: Altered by The Quint)

A day after the Paradise Papers leak brought out several offshore companies into the open, the report has now named some of the leading media houses in the country.

Apart from Network 18, some of the names in the list include Hindustan Times Group, and the Zee Media group, reveals the Indian Express investigation.

Also Read: Paradise Leak: Network 18 Founder Raghav Bahl Cites Tax Compliance

Hindustan Times Group

According to the Appleby records accessed by the Indian Express, the HT group set up a company named Go4i.com (Bermuda) Ltd, through an entity HTBC Ltd, which is also one of the three shareholders in the offshore company.

The two other shareholders in Go4i.com (Bermuda) are Swaminn Investments based in Cayman Islands and Indocean Internet Holding, based in Bermuda. While the HT group's annual reports in 2003-2004 list Go4i.com (Bermuda) as a subsidiary, it does not mention any shareholding in the offshore company.

The records of the Hindustan Times Ltd, which is the holding company of the Group, shows that Go4i.com (Bermuda) suffered losses in 2003 and 2004. However, there is no mention of the nature of business and the revenue that Go4i.com (Bermuda) earned in these two years.

Further, there is no mention of the Bermuda-based entity after 2004 in the Registrar of Companies (RoC), notes Indian Express.

The directors of Go4i.com (Bermuda) were found to be Shobhana Bhartia – the chairperson of the Hindustan Times Group – and Priyavrat, her son. They are also listed as the directors of HTBC Ltd.

Shobhana Bhartia's Response:

When Indian Express contacted Shobhana Bhartia's office for her response, they were informed that Go4i.com (Bermuda) was formed as a subsidiary of the Hindustan Times Ltd to "undertake internet and other allied business".

The statement also added that the company was formed after taking all the required approvals, and was subsequently closed in 2004.

Zee's Essel group

Essel Group's offshore companies were named in the Paradise Papers for having facilitated a chain of loans to finance the repayment of debt arising from the Group's Veria Lifestyle, the Indian Express reveals.

According to Appleby records, a $62 milion loan was indirectly backed by promoter shares from Zee Entertainment Enterprise Limited. The loan was taken from Credit Suise to finance an "existing offshore promoter debt" in 2013.

The loan was given to one offshore company, which in turn facilitated the financial transaction through another offshore company, thus beginning a complex web of transactions.

When the Indian Express contacted Essel Group's Subhash Chandra with the list of loans, his office replied by saying that he no longer holds any post in Zee, except for being a non-executive chairman.

We also confirm that all activities in these companies satisfy/comply with all regulatory aspects in their respective jurisdictions including India.