FCRA bill not taken up amid opposition’s opposition. india news
New Delhi: Opposition protests against a bill to amend the Foreign Contribution Regulation Act rocked Parliament on Wednesday, leading to adjournment of proceedings in the Lok Sabha, amid allegations that the BJP is trying to control independent NGOs.Opposition MPs also protested in the Parliament complex. As soon as the Lok Sabha convened, opposition members started raising slogans against the FCRA (Amendment) Bill. Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju said the bill seeks to protect national security and is not intended to target any religion. He said that the bill is not being taken up for discussion on Wednesday.
Congress, Left parties are misleading the people of Kerala: Rijiju fcra bill
As the protests were led mainly by members from Kerala and Tamil Nadu, Rijiju said the Congress and Left parties were misleading the people of the poll-bound state Kerala.While the BJP is wooing Christians, especially in the electoral state of Kerala, where they constitute over 18% of the population, the government’s decision to move slowly on the FCRA bill due to opposition from Christian groups may be motivated by political pragmatism. While the BJP believes that amending the law through the bill is necessary to prevent its alleged misuse against the “national interest”, the party has been receptive to the demands of Christian groups in the past, as seen in the prompt release of two Kerala nuns arrested under the anti-conversion law in Chhattisgarh last year, following fierce protests from the community.The opposition demonstrated before the Parliament proceedings began. Holding a huge banner asking the government to “stop targeting NGOs and institutions”, the MPs raised slogans and demanded the withdrawal of the bill.As most of the MPs were out for election campaigning, AICC general secretary KC Venugopal said on Monday night that Congress members had been asked to be present in the House and protest against the FCRA bill, while other parties were invited to join the protest.
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Congress MP Manickam Tagore said that opposition unity has forced the government to stop the bill for the time being. Fellow Congress member Manish Tewari described the bill as “arbitrary, malicious and capricious”.Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav alleged, “BJP wants to control NGOs and make them puppets and gradually take over their properties.”The two traditional rivals in Kerala, the Congress and the Left, have united against the provisions of the bill, alleging that it will target charitable institutions including schools and hospitals run by minorities, especially Christians.