Catholic body urges HM to withdraw FCRA Bill

The Catholic Bishops’ Conference of India (CBCI) on Friday urged Home Minister Amit Shah to withdraw the Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Amendment Bill, 2026 and the recently notified rules, stressing that both be redrafted after wider consultation with stakeholders.

The CBCI submitted a memorandum to Shah, raising concerns over the proposed FCRA Bill, 2026, religious freedom, the rights of Scheduled Caste (SC) Christians and the humanitarian crisis in Manipur. The memorandum, signed by CBCI president Cardinal Anthony Poola and CBCI secretary general Archbishop Anil Couto, was handed to Shah when the delegation met him here.

The CBCI expressed concern over the proposed amendments to the FCRA and said some of the proposed provisions could affect charitable institutions that have served poor and vulnerable communities for decades.

The Conference urged the Government to withdraw the proposed Amendment Bill and the recently notified Rules. It requested that both be redrafted after wider consultation with stakeholders, a CBCI statement said.

It said any changes to the law should apply only in the future. They should not affect existing rights, legally acquired assets or ongoing charitable work.

It called for independent judicial oversight in FCRA cases. It also sought safeguards before the government can take over or transfer the assets of an institution. The memorandum said there should be a clear distinction between minor procedural lapses and serious offences. It said charitable assets should continue to be used according to the intentions of donors. The memorandum also raised concerns over various state freedom of religion Acts. It alleged that there was a continued denial of SC status to Christians and other religious minorities of SC origin under the Constitution (Scheduled Castes) Order, 1950.

Noting that these matters are pending before the Supreme Court, the CBCI appealed for an early hearing and final judgment.

It said the delay continues to affect the dignity, equality and constitutional rights of millions of citizens and creates uncertainty among minority communities.

The CBCI also highlighted the continuing humanitarian crisis in Manipur and said thousands of farming families have lost their livelihoods. Many students have faced disruption to their education, while several families have left the state in search of safety, education and employment, the CBCI said. The Conference appealed to the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) to take urgent steps to restore lasting peace, communal harmony and normalcy in Manipur. It also reaffirmed the Church’s willingness to work with the government in promoting reconciliation, humanitarian assistance and social healing.

Congress general secretary KC Venugopal attacked the BJP over the issue after the CBCI submitted its memorandum. “In typical BJP fashion, HM Amit Shah has lied to the CBCI about FCRA and is wrongly deflecting blame to hide his Government’s culpability in weaponising the FCRA laws. In reality, the Modi Government has been hell-bent on using the FCRA to harass vocal civil society organisations and minority-run institutions and take over their properties,” Venugopal said on X.

In 2020, they severely tightened FCRA rules to increase the time period for which organisations can be suspended, gave greater powers to the Centre to scrutinise them, and even limited their administrative expenses, essentially crippling them from carrying out their routine activities, the Congress leader alleged.

“In 2026, first they sought to amend the FCRA legislation to give the Centre powers to seize properties of recipient organisations and also brought in provisions of ‘deemed cessation’ of licences. After widespread Opposition, they withdrew these amendments only to reintroduce them through the back door as delegated legislation,” he said.

In these new rules, they are also preventing organisations from changing their scope of work or geography, and bringing in ideological scrutiny to disallow those who oppose them, he claimed.

“I challenge the Home Minister to show if any of these low-trust, vindictive measures were part of the FCRA in 2010 when the UPA brought it in. These are all measures introduced by a fascist regime that wants to destroy the civil society space through its harsh and regressive control,” Venugopal said.

“The Homsonalities and the general public, and immediately withdraw these rules,” he asserted.