FCRA-Organisations agitating for their legitimate claims cannot be prevented access to foreign funds, rules Supreme Court
(Judicial Quest News Service)
In an important judgement delivered on Friday, The Apex Court held that any organisation cannot be deprived.
of its right to receive the foreign funding by being declared apolitical organisation merely because it uses legitimate means of dissent for public causes [Indian Social Action Forum (INSAF)union of India].
A division bench of Justices Nageswara Rao and Deepak Gupta held:
As per Section 3(1)(f) of FCRA, an “organisation of political nature” as specified by the Central Government is banned from receiving foreign contributions. The norms for declaring an organisation were laid down by the Centre as per Rule 3 of the FCRA rules 2011.
According to the 2010 Act, an organisation of a political nature, as specified, is barred from accepting foreign contributions. The procedure to notify an organisation of a political nature is prescribed under Section 5 of the 2010 Act. Before declaring the Central Government shall take into account the activities of the organisation or the ideology propagated by the organisation or the programme of the organisation with the activities of any political party.
As per the Section 5 (3), the organisation is to be given an opportunity to submit its representations which shall be considered within the time prescribed in section 5 and an order is required to be passed recording the reasons therefor.
“declaring an organisation as an organisation of political nature not being a political party. Guidelines that are prescribed by the Rules indicate that only those organisations which are actively involved in politics or associated with political parties can be declared as organisations of a political nature.”
According to Rule 3 (i) an organisation having avowed political objectives in its memorandum of association or bye laws is an organisation of a political nature.
“Any organisation which supports the cause of a group of citizens agitating for their rights without a political goal or objective cannot be penalized by being declared as an organisation of a political nature.”
While interpreting Rule 3 of the FCRA, the Court pointed out,
“Any organisation which habitually engages itself in or employs common methods of political action like ‘bandh’ or ‘hartal’, ‘rasta roko’, ‘rail roko’ or ‘jail bharo’ in support of public causes can also be declared as an organisation of political nature, according to the guideline prescribed in Rule 3 (vi). Support to public causes by resorting to legitimate means of dissent like bandh, hartal etc. cannot deprive an organisation of its legitimate right of receiving foreign contribution”
The Court thus clarified gthat only those organisations which are actively involved in party and electoral politics will be covered under the purview of Rule 3 and Voluntary organisations working for public causes and such cannot be barred from receiving foreign funds.
Read the Judgement here:
