Catholic bishops’ Conference of India writes to Amit Shah; flags ‘serious concerns’ over FCRA amendments

The Catholic Bishops’ Conference of India (CBCI) has written to Home Minister Amit Shah flagging “serious concerns” over the proposed amendments to the Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Act (FCRA), urging wider consultation and safeguards against “excessive State control over civil society”.

In identical communications to Shah and Members of Parliament (MPs) dated March 31, the CBCI said the FCRA Bill, 2026, while aimed at strengthening oversight, could upset the “constitutional balance, civil society freedom and the future of charitable service in India”.

The bishops’ body raised particular concern over provisions that would allow foreign contributions and assets created out of such funds to vest in a designated authority not only in cases of cancellation or surrender of FCRA registration but also in cases of “deemed cessation”, including non-renewal of licences.

It warned that this expansion could disproportionately affect organisations whose renewals are denied, especially as the renewal process is “totally controlled” by the Home Ministry.

It further said the deficiencies noticed by the department are “not communicated to the association, and the associations are not granted an opportunity to make representations regarding the deficiencies on the basis of which the renewals are refused or denied”.

Flagging constitutional issues, the CBCI said the proposed framework raises concerns under Article 300A relating to the right to property, pointing to the “absence of prior judicial determination before such vesting of assets,” which it said departs from due process and proportionality. The memorandum also cautioned that the amendments could impact religious freedom under Articles 25 and 26, noting that faith-based organisations across communities run schools, hospitals and social outreach programmes.

It said the lack of safeguards for charitable and educational institutions may lead to “undue interference in the internal management and service mission” of such bodies. Further, the body objected to provisions expanding liability to “key functionaries”, arguing that this creates a presumption of culpability and could deter voluntary participation in civil society initiatives.

The CBCI also said organisations receiving foreign contributions are deeply engaged in service delivery among the poor, Dalits, tribal communities and in remote areas, and warned that the proposed changes risk disrupting essential services.

In its appeal to the MPs and the Home Minister, the CBCI urged that the Bill be referred to a parliamentary standing committee for wider consultation, and called for safeguards to ensure that “administrative lapses do not lead to disproportionate penalties such as asset seizure”.

It also sought provisions for judicial oversight, protection of institutional autonomy and the creation of an independent appellate authority, stressing that regulation “must not become excessive control or result in unintended expropriation”.