Now Reading: FCRA Bill likely headed to Joint Parliamentary Committee after uproar
-
01
FCRA Bill likely headed to Joint Parliamentary Committee after uproar
The government is likely to refer the Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Amendment Bill, 2026 to a Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) after facing demands for a complete rollback from the opposition and Christian bodies,…
The Story in Brief
The government is likely to refer the Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Amendment Bill, 2026 to a Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) after facing demands for a complete rollback from the opposition and Christian bodies, sources said. Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla reportedly reached out to Congress MP KC Venugopal, but the opposition wants the bill withdrawn, not sent to a panel. The bill, introduced on March 25, has not been debated amid protests.
Tamil Nadu Assembly passed a unanimous resolution urging the Centre to withdraw the bill, warning it threatens the autonomy of charitable and minority-run institutions. In Mizoram, hundreds of Christians rallied against the bill. Maharashtra CM Devendra Fadnavis defended the amendments, saying they target anti-national misuse of foreign funds, not any community. He questioned foreign comments on the bill. The government has informed allies it will move a JPC resolution in the Lok Sabha.
The Indian Opinion
The government calls the FCRA Bill religion-neutral; the opposition calls it anti-Christian. Both are talking past each other. The bill’s provision to let a designated authority seize assets without a court order is what really alarms NGOs across the board. The real test is not who shouts louder in Parliament, but what the JPC, if it gets the bill, will do to that clause. Will it add judicial oversight or keep the executive as judge and jury?
Sources (4): timesofindia.indiatimes.com, timesofindia.indiatimes.com (2), timesofindia.indiatimes.com (3), thehindu.com
This story was synthesised by AI from the 4 sources linked above.
Updated: this story now draws on 4 sources.
