The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Friday levied a penalty on Amnesty India International Private Limited (AIIPL) and its former CEO Aakar Patel for alleged violations of the country’s foreign exchange law, the agency said in a statement.
The agency’s adjucating authority has ordered AIIPL to pay a penalty of ₹51.72 crore and Patel has been asked to pay ₹10 crore for alleged contraventions of the Foreign Exchange Management Act, 1999 (FEMA).
“The Adjudicating Authority of Directorate of Enforcement (ED) has adjudicated a Show Cause Notice issued to M/s Amnesty India International Pvt. Ltd.(AIIPL) and its CEO Shri Aakar Patel for contravention of the provisions of The Foreign Exchange Management Act, 1999 (FEMA) and imposed penalty to the tune of Rs. 51.72 crore and ₹10 crore respectively,” said the ED statement.
Patel did not respond to messages seeking comment, but he tweeted from an unverified handle, “The ed is the govt not the judiciary. we will fight it (again) and win (again) in court.’’
The probe agency said that Amnesty International, headquartered in the UK, had been using the foreign direct investment (FDI) route to transfer foreign contributions “to the tune of ₹51,72,78,111.87” through its Indian entities that are not approved under the Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Act (FCRA), 2010.
{{/usCountry}}The probe agency said that Amnesty International, headquartered in the UK, had been using the foreign direct investment (FDI) route to transfer foreign contributions “to the tune of ₹51,72,78,111.87” through its Indian entities that are not approved under the Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Act (FCRA), 2010.
{{/usCountry}}The funds were transferred to “expand its NGO activities in India, despite the denial of prior registration or permissions to Amnesty International India Foundation Trust (AIIFT) and other trusts under FCRA by Ministry of Home Affairs, Govt. of India”, the ED statement said.
In 2018, ED began conducting searches of properties of Amnesty India over allegations that AIIPL was formed to receive foreign funding, violating FCRA rules. In 2019, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) filed a case against the NGO alleging violation of foreign exchange rules.
In April, Patel was stopped from travelling to the US at the Bengaluru International Airport due to a lookout circular issued by CBI.
“I found out that I was on the lookout list only when I went to the airport. It happened after check-in, at immigration. We put our bags in and had to go through immigration,” Patel said in a series of tweets on April 6.
ED further said that funds received by Amnesty between November 2013 and June 2018 were claimed as the amount for “business/management consultancy and public relation services for export of services to the foreign beneficiary. However, the funds were found to be transferred from an overseas remitter, violating FEMA provisions.”
The investigating agency dismissed all submissions and contentions from the NGO citing they lack “concrete evidence”. It further alleged that AIIPL has been evading FCRA scrutiny by routing their foreign funds “in the guise of business activities”.
“After getting a detailed reply from AIIPL and following the principle of natural justice, the Adjudicating Authority of ED has held that AIIPL is an umbrella entity under M/s. Amnesty International Ltd., UK, which was declared to be set up for the cause of social activities in India. However, AIIPL has been involved in many activities which are not relevant to their declared commercial business,” ED said.