NHRC takes cognizance of Amnesty halting India operations, issues notice to Home Secretary

On Wednesday, the National Human Rights Commission took suo moto cognizance of Amnesty International closing its operations in India due to the Centre's alleged "witch-hunt". It issued a notice to Union Home Secretary Ajay Bhalla demanding his response on the charges levelled by Amnesty International. Terming it as a "reputed NGO" which raises its voice on human rights violations globally, the Commission argued that it is necessary to analyse the facts and reach a conclusion in the interest of human rights friendly environment in the country.

NHRC shuts down operations

Amnesty International halted its operations in India after the Enforcement Directorate froze all its local bank accounts. In a statement, the organization revealed that it had been compelled to let go of its staff in India besides pausing ongoing campaign and research work. According to the NGO, ED raided its Bengaluru office in October 2018. 

In November 2019, the CBI filed a case against Amnesty International alleging that it had received funding of Rs.36 crore without the mandatory permission required under the Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Act. The NGO has attributed these charges to its unequivocal calls for transparency in the Union government, more recently for accountability of the Delhi Police and the Centre regarding the alleged human rights violations in Delhi riots and in the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir. It has decided to move the Karnataka High Court against the freezing of bank accounts. 

Read: BJP Says Amnesty India Violated Law On Foreign Funds, Engaged In 'fake Campaign' on CAA

MHA rebuts charges

Meanwhile, the Ministry of Home Affairs slammed Amnesty International for its "exaggerated" statements. Recalling that the NGO received permission under the FCRA only once on December 19, 2000, the MHA revealed that the former had been denied FCRA approval by successive governments since then. It alleged that Amnesty UK remitted large amounts of money to 4 entities registered in India under the FDI route to circumvent the FCRA regulations.

Basically, it pinned the blame on Amnesty International for adopting dubious processes to secure funds for its operations. The Ministry contended that the NGO's statement was an attempt to influence the course of the investigation by multiple agencies. While acknowledging that Amnesty International was free to continue humanitarian work in India, it stressed that entities funded by foreign donations cannot interfere in domestic political debates. 

Read: Amnesty: Migrants Face 'vicious Cycle Of Cruelty' In Libya