Foreign fund: govt throws new lasso on NGOs and religious outfits

New Delhi: The Foreign Contribution Regulation (Amendment) Bill 2020, introduced in the current parliament session, has drawn flak as it seeks to strictly control NGOs and individuals receiving foreign funds.

Shrugging away the demand of the Opposition parties to leave the bill to parliament standing committee, the government passed the bill with disputatious clauses.

The bill, introduced on Sunday, includes pointless clauses especially targeting minorities as well as casting a shadow of doubt on NGOs, the Opposition pointed out.

The parties including Congress, Trinamool Congress, NCP blamed that the government might use the bill to harness NGOs, and suppress dissenting voices.

Congress leader Gaurav Gagoi lauded NGOs and religious outfits for their services during natural calamities and Covid spread and asked the government not to cast a shadow of doubt on them. By demoralizing the NGOs, the government was digging the grave for NGOs, Said ET Muhammad Basheer of Muslim League.

The government was targeting minorities doing exemplary works in education and health, said Anto Antony and Vincent M Pala of Congress, adding that religious outfits were not in for conversion and NGOs not anti-government.

Supriya Sule of NCP said that the laws that suppress people who serve society again showed that the nation was in Emergency like situation.

Trinamool Congress leader Saugata Roy demanded the government to repeal the bill having gratuitous clauses. The government snubbed the opposition's charges claiming that new clauses aim at transparency.