FCRA license suspension: Delhi High Court allows Centre for Policy Research to use 25% of unutilised funds

The Delhi High Court on Monday allowed a plea by think tank, Centre for Policy Research (CPR) to use 25% of the 'unutilised amount' lying with the organisation. .Justice Subramonium Prasad allowed the plea and said it will hear CPR's case against suspension of its Foreign Contribution Regulation Act (FCRA) license on January 11, 2024. A detailed order is awaited. .The CPR had approached the High Court challenging the Central government's decision of February 27, 2023 to suspend its FCRA license license.With the petition, the think tank also filed an application to use its unutilised funds as per Rule 14 of FCRA Rules. It was CPR's case that they had approached the Central government with this application in March but that the government was yet to take a decision despite over six months having been passed. Rule 14 of the FCRA Rules says that if the FCRA registration of an organisation is suspended under Section 13(1) of FCRA, up to 25% of the unutilised amount "may be spent, with the prior approval of the Central Government, for the declared aims and objects for which the foreign contribution was received.".Senior Advocate Arvind P Datar had appeared for CPR and argued that it receives nearly 70% of its funds from abroad and because of the suspension of the FCRA license, the think-tank's operations have come to a grinding halt.It was further stated that more than 80 scientists and employees have left CPR because it has not been able to pay them salaries for nearly six months."I am begging to release the salaries...You may not like any dissent in the country but what have those poor employees done? Home Ministry cleared in its audit, CAG (Comptroller and Auditor General) cleared me and then suddenly this happened. It is extremely sad if you are going to close down Indian think-tanks like this...One small dissent and this is done. This is a pattern," Datar submitted..Meanwhile, Advocate Arunima Dwivedi appeared for the Central government and stated that the government has material against the NGO based on which these proceedings were initiated and its FCRA license suspended.She said that pursuant to the application filed by CPR, some clarifications were sought and a reply to the same was received only in May.Dwivedi argued that the "unutilised amount" means an amount that is "unspent" and that funds in fixed deposits are outside its ambit..CPR has been involved in research with a focus on India’s 21st-century challenges since the year 1973.It is headed by political scientist and former Principal of Lady Shri Ram College, Meenakshi Gopinath. Yamini Aiyar is the think-tank’s President and Chief Executive. The other members on its governing board include former foreign secretary Shyam Saran and Senior Advocate Shyam Divan.Troubles began for the non-profit soon after it was surveyed by the Income Tax department in September last year. Following the survey, IT reassessment proceedings started against the NGO, its FCRA license was suspended, and it subsequently lost its tax exemption status as well.In an order passed on May 24, the High Court stayed the reassessment proceedings against the NGO. The High Court had also stayed IT department’s order cancelling its tax exemption status. The government authorities have alleged that CPR was involved in the Hasdeo movement against coal mining in the Chhattisgarh forests and that it used some of the funds received for filing litigation and complaints rather than for research.