The Union government has suspended the Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Act or FCRA licence of the Centre for Policy Research (CPR), a non-profit public policy think tank. The CPR had been under scrutiny since the Income Tax (I-T) surveys on it and Oxfam India in September last year, The Economic Times reported. The suspension of the licence means that CPR will not be able to receive any funds from abroad. However, a CPR representative told ET that their FCRA application was “under renewal.” CPR’s FCRA licence was last renewed in 2016 and was due for renewal in 2021, according to PTI.
CPR's website says that it has been one of India's leading public policy think tanks since 1973. The donors of CPR included the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, the University of Pennsylvania, the World Resources Institute and Duke University, officials told PTI. CPR also receives grants from the Indian Council for Social Science Research (ICSSR) and is a recognised institution of the Department of Science and Technology.
According to Hindustan Times, the FCRA licence was suspended on Monday, February 27, over alleged violations of law, and a Union Home Ministry official said that a detailed investigation will now follow. The think-tank has been asked to give clarification and documents regarding FCRA funds received by it, officials told PTI.
In September 2022, the I-T Department conducted raids and surveys on CPR, Oxfam India, and Bengaluru-based Independent and Public-Spirited Media Foundation (IPSMF). The raids and surveys were conducted in various states in separate cases related to alleged tax evasion, FCRA violations, and illicit funding of registered unrecognised political parties. At the time, CPR had issued a statement saying, “We hold ourselves to the highest standards of compliance and are confident that we have done nothing wrong. We are committed to working with the authorities to address any questions they might have.”
Oxfam India’s FCRA licence too was suspended in January last year, and the NGO filed a revision petition with the Union Ministry of Home Affairs. Earlier in February, the Delhi High Court had sought the Union government's response on Oxfam India’s plea challenging the decision to not renew its FCRA registration. The MHA was directed by a single-judge bench of Justice Pratibha M Singh to file a response within four weeks' time, and the bench listed the matter for hearing in April.