Ghazanfar Abbas, IndiaTomorrow.net,
New Delhi, Dec 21: After its Foreign Contribution Regulation Act (FCRA) license was cancelled by the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA), civil society group Act Now for Harmony and Democracy (ANHAD) termed it is a “badge of honor” to raise dissent voices against “the most openly intolerant government” to lead the country so far except for the 18 months of the emergency.
“This is a ‘badge of honor’. We refused to be cowed down, and we will continue our work with Indian donations and if these are unavailable, then with no funds. But we strongly condemn the deployment of the FCRA as a tool of repression by the current government. The State is following a systematic and sustained agenda of suppressing those very dissenting voices that have consistently challenged the system,” Shabnam Hashmi the founder of ANHAD said while speaking in a press conference at Women’s press club here.
FCRA of ANHAD was renewed in March 2016
ANHAD’s FCRA was renewed in March 2016, after ANHAD faced an enquiry from the Home Ministry in June 2014. In November 2015 the Home Ministry undertook a second enquiry where 4 trunk full of material was sent to them. After this, ANHAD’s FCRA registration was renewed in March 2016. Less than nine months later, it stands cancelled!
“There was an inspection in November 2015, where all our documents, annual reports, expense statements was studied. After which we received our FCRA license in March 2016. Then suddenly on December 15, I was informed that our license has been cancelled. This is an open repressive of any kind of liberal and progressive civic dissent,” Hashmi said.
Besides ANHAD, seven other ¬civil society organisations who’s FCRA registrations were similarly renewed and then cancelled. These include Lawyers’ Collective, Sabrang, Centre for Justice, People’s Watch, Indian Social Action Forum (INSAF), Institute of Public Health (Bengaluru) and Navsarjan (Ahmedabad).
Agenda to malign and suppression
In a press statement ANHAD said, -“The current FCRA registration cancellations are the most immediate example of this escalating problem, whereby the government maligns and criminalizes those very organizations and individuals that stand for human rights and liberal values.”
“The MHA has also suggested that these organizations are working against ‘national interest’: terminology that then renders these organizations open to all manner of abuse. The right to dissent, one of the cornerstones of a healthy democracy, has been haunted by this sceptre of anti-nationalism, creating a political climate where dissent warrants swift retribution. The double standards of the government are exposed at a time when it thinks it is fine to have 100 per cent FDI in many areas including defence, but cannot accept dissenting organisations to have any access to funds,” it further reads.
Anhad (Act Now for Harmony and Democracy) was set up after the 2002 Gujarat carnage, has been fighting for the riot victims and working for marginalized sections of the society.
“We worked in Jammu & Kashmir in 50 villages with more than 900 people for their livelihood, education and vocational training after earthquake. We worked in Gujarat and Mewat for marginalized section. We are not taking any benefit from FCRA but to do our work efficiently,” Shabnam said.
“We have decided to not to go to court. They don’t want dissent voices be raise but it is their misunderstanding to stop our work by cancelling our FCRA. We shall continue our work and political fight,” she asserted.
While speaking to the media, Prof. Apoorwanad Jha, Dr. Syeda Saiyidain Hameed, former member of Planning Commission of India, human rights activists Dr. John Dayal and Harsh Mander also expressed their concern over the cancellation of ANHAD’s FCRA and termed it an open threat to the democracy.
Speaking to the media Prof. Apoorvanand Jha said, “ANHAD is not working anti-people. FCRA cancellation is also a question to the health of our democratic system. So, we also have to see on which move of the government, court considers to take suo moto.”
