NEW DELHI, JUL 16 (PTI): The Central Information Commission has said the blanket denial of information sought on FCRA renewal applications by the Union Ministry of Home Affairs “ap-pears to be misplaced and without any basis”, while observing that the CPIO prima facie “ob-structed” the complainant’s right to information.
The Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Act (FCRA) regulates the acceptance and utilisation of foreign contributions by individuals and associations in India. The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) administers the law and grants or renews registration for eligible organisations to receive foreign funds, subject to compliance with the Act and applicable rules.
The observations were made by Chief Information Commissioner Raj Kumar Goyal while hear-ing a complaint filed by an RTI applicant against the Central Public Information Officer (CPIO), MHA, over non-receipt of a reply to an RTI application.
The applicant had sought information on organisations that had applied for renewal of their FCRA registration from January 1, 2022, applications for which renewals had been granted, those that were pending along with reasons for the delay and the SOP or other information re-garding grant of renewal after queries raised by the FCRA Division (regarding the applications) had been resolved.
The RTI application was filed on October 16, 2024. The complainant approached the Central Information Commission (CIC) on December 5, 2024, alleging that the CPIO had not replied to his application.
MHA informed the commission that a reply had subsequently been sent on December 24, 2024.
Govt lists bills to amend FCRA Act: The Lok Sabha secretariat said that the government has listed the consideration and passing of the contentious Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Amendment (FCRA) Bill, 2026.
This bill was introduced in the Lok Sabha during the Budget session but did not come up for consideration and passage, ostensibly due to opposition from certain quarters in Kerala, where assembly elections were due around that time.
The bill seeks to vest in the government the power to strip the NGOs of their assets if they fail to comply with FCRA registration requirements.
Friday, July 17, 2026