FAQs on the FCRA Act 2020 October 23, 2020, 6:38 AM IST
All your questions on the FCRA Act 2020, broken down and answered simply.
On September 20th, the Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Amendment Bill, 2020 was introduced in the Lok Sabha. The amendments broadly redefined terms related to acceptance, transfer, and utilisation of foreign contributions to charitable organisations under the Foreign Contribution Regulation Act (FCRA), 2010. The bill was passed by the two houses of Parliament, and ratified by the President of India, within a week. It passed into law on September 29th, 2020.
Here is a quick read that breaks down the implications of the amendments for nonprofits (with and without FCRA), service providers, CSR funders, and foreign contributors.
Several prominent activists remain in custody even as the case is being investigated
The top human rights body of the United Nations has urged the Indian government to release the activists who are in prison for the 2018 Bhima Koregaon case, “at the very least on bail”. Several prominent activists like Varavara Rao and Fr. Stan Swamy were arrested and remain in custody even as the case is being investigated.
“We continue to be concerned about the situation of activists detained in India, including in the context of the Bhima Koregaon events. We encourage the authorities to release these individuals, at the very least, on bail while they await trial,” the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) said on Friday during a weekly briefing, online publication
Debate on foreign funding to political parties is global
National
January 23, 2021
LAHORE: When almost all mainstream political parties in Pakistan are accusing each other of receiving funds from prohibited foreign sources, a research by the Jang Group and Geo Television Network shows that fiery debates on this thorny issue have been going on everywhere in the world for years.
In India, where foreign funding to political parties remains illegal, the Delhi High Court, in 2014, had found both ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and its key adversary, the Indian National Congress, guilty of receiving foreign funding.
In India, the conduct of elections to the Houses of Parliament and state legislatures is mainly regulated by the 1951 Representation of the People Act. Section 29B of the 1951 Act prohibits all political parties registered with the Election Commission from accepting any contribution from a “foreign source.”
India s human rights defenders deserve EU support
Indian prime minister Narendra Modi. There seems to be very little appetite in the EU institutions to take a firm public stance on India s human rights situation (Photo: Foreign and Commonwealth Office)
Brussels, 12. Jan, 07:03
On Tuesday (12th January), the EU-India Human Rights dialogue will take place. Will EU leaders take a leap and stop keeping quiet about the deteriorating human rights situation in India?
The civic space in India has been squeezed tighter from all directions over the past couple of years.
Read and decide
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