Overview
- Following Wednesday's opposition protests in Parliament, the government deferred discussion during the Budget Session, leaving the March 25 FCRA amendment bill active for a later sitting.
- The proposal would trigger automatic loss of an NGO’s foreign-funding license on expiry or non-renewal and create a designated authority with civil-court powers to vest, manage, or dispose of assets built with foreign funds.
- Opposition leaders including M. K. Stalin and Pinarayi Vijayan call the bill draconian and say it threatens minority-run schools and hospitals, while major Christian bodies such as the AICU and the Catholic bishops demand full withdrawal.
- Union minister Kiren Rijiju says the measure targets illegal foreign funding and protects national security, not any religion, and he assures law‑abiding churches and NGOs they will not be harmed.
- About 16,000 registered groups receive roughly ₹22,000 crore a year under the FCRA, and critics warn asset takeovers could disrupt education and healthcare for poor communities, a risk that looms large in poll-bound Kerala and Tamil Nadu.