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MHA grants FCRA licenses to Sonu Sood’s NGO, TIPA, and Banke Bihari Temple

ByNeeraj Chauhan
Jan 25, 2025 01:57 PM IST

MHA grants FCRA licenses to Sonu Sood's NGO, TIPA, and Banke Bihari Temple for five years to receive foreign funds amid tightened regulations.

New Delhi: The ministry of home affairs (MHA) has granted Foreign Contribution Regulation Act (FCRA) licenses to actor Sonu Sood’s non-governmental organisation (NGO), Sood Charity Foundation, the Tibetan Institute of Performing Arts (TIPA), founded by the 14th Dalai Lama, and the Banke Bihari Temple in Vrindavan, according to people familiar with the development on Saturday.

Bollywood actor Sonu Sood sending off 350 migrant workers to their native places in Karnataka by buses, amid COVID-19 lockdown in Mumbai (PTI)
Bollywood actor Sonu Sood sending off 350 migrant workers to their native places in Karnataka by buses, amid COVID-19 lockdown in Mumbai (PTI)

The organisations have been granted licenses to receive and utilise foreign funds for five years, they said.

Sood arranged free transportation via rail, air, and road for the migrant workers to return home who were stuck during the nationwide lockdown imposed in 2020 to contain COVID-19, emerged as a national hero gaining a huge fan following. In September 2021, the income tax department raided the Sood Charity Foundation , alleging that the actor was involved in a 20 crore tax evasion case and violated the Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Act (FCRA).

According to its website, the foundation works in the fields of education, environment, healthcare, and empowering the underprivileged. HT has reached out to the Sood Charity Foundation for a comment.

TIPA, founded by the 14th Dalai Lama upon his arrival in Kalimpong in August 1959, can now receive funds for its cultural activities, officials said.

The institute, which is headquartered in McLeod Ganj, claims to preserve and promote the age-old folk music, opera, and dance traditions of Tibet, among other related activities. An email query to TIPA remained unanswered at the time of filing this report.

The Home Ministry also granted a FCRA license to the Shri Banke Bihari Mandir in Vrindavan. “Banke Bihari temple is currently managed by the court, which has formed a management committee. This management committee, under court approval, had applied for the FCRA license. The temple used to be managed by the family of priests and was under private management earlier,” a senior MHA official said.

This officer further explained, “As per the application (of the committee), the temple receives a lot of foreign currency in their chest and also intends to receive donations from abroad.”

This year, 70 NGOs/associations have been granted FCRA licenses by the MHA. As of now, 16,089 NGOs hold FCRA licenses, while the licenses of 20,713 organizations have been cancelled.

The Centre tightened FCRA regulations in 2020 by making several amendments. It even cancelled the licenses of the Rajiv Gandhi Foundation (RGF) and the Rajiv Gandhi Charitable Trust (RGCT) in 2022, accusing them of violating the law.

Between 2019 and 2022, the FCRA unit of the MHA conducted inspections or audits of at least 335 NGOs and associations registered or granted prior permission under FCRA to ensure compliance with foreign funding rules.

The FCRA Act, amended in September 2020, bars public servants from receiving foreign funding and makes Aadhaar mandatory for every office-bearer of NGOs. The amended law also restricts organizations from using more than 20% of foreign funds for administrative purposes, down from the previous limit of 50%.

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