http://www.firstpost.com/politics/foreign-funding-violations-bjp-congress-also-under-scrutiny-1227189.html
Foreign funding violations: BJP,
Congress also under scrutiny
by Danish
Raza
Nov 13,
2013
#AAP
#Arvind Kejriwal #BJP #Congress #FCRA
#foreign funds #Sushilkumar Shinde
The Aam
Aadmi Party (AAP) claims that the funding it received from abroad is within the
ambit of the law and the probe ordered into its funding by the union government
is not a cause for worry.
The AAP says that the Foreign Contribution Regulation
Act (FCRA), the law to regulate foreign funds received from abroad by Indian
organisations, does not apply to it because it never received any foreign
funding. “We receive money from Non-resident Indians holding only Indian
passports. In fact, we have a condition under which any one holding a foreign
passport – which technically makes him or her a foreigner – cannot contribute
to the AAP. Therefore, the question of foreign contribution or violation of
FCRA does not arise,” Pankaj Gupta, AAP national secretary, told Firstpost.
According to FCRA, any financial contribution from any foreign source or
company to a political party registered in India is a criminal offence. While
the AAP has accused the government of indulging in a witch-hunt, Union Home
Minister Sushilkumar Shinde clarified that the probe into AAP’s foreign funding
was not a government initiative, but done following a Delhi High Court order.
“We have ordered the inquiry after the Delhi High Court took note of the matter
and passed instructions,” PTI quoted Shinde as saying. Based on a petition
alleging that AAP has violated FCRA by receiving foreign funding, Delhi HC
ordered the Centre to investigate the same and file a response by December 10.
“You go through the accounts again after AAP was formed. In case you find
anything in violation of FCRA, take action or you inform the court about the
status,” the court observed on October 23, after which, the home ministry’s
foreigners division sent a questionnaire to AAP. Out of Rs 19 crore collected
since the party’s launch, Rs 6 crore has been given by NRIs, confirmed AAP.
Since Monday, when news broke of the Centre ordering a probe into the party’s
foreign funding, it has received Rs 32 lakh as donations from supporters living
abroad, said Pankaj Gupta.
This is not an isolated case where the foreign
funding of a political party has been questioned. The Association for
Democratic Reforms (ADR), a Delhi-based NGO, filed a PIL in Delhi High Court in
January alleging that the Congress and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) have
violated the Representation of People’s Act (RPA) 1951 and Foreign Contribution
(Regulation) Act (FCRA) by taking donations from government companies and
foreign sources, prohibited under both the legislations.
London-based Vedanta Resources and its subsidiary
companies in India – Sterlite, Sesa Goa and MALCO – donated several crores of
rupees to major political parties such as the Congress and the BJP, said the
petition.
In their counter affidavits, the home ministry, Congress and BJP
argued that an Indian subsidiary of a foreign company making donations to
political party is legal if the majority of stakes in the foreign company are
held by an Indian. The case will be heard next in January 2014.
Sanjay Kaul,
spokesperson for the BJP, told Firstpost, “The law of the land should be
followed in all cases. If the civil society believes that there something wrong
in funding of a political party, it should move court.”
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Firstpost
Politics
Foreign funding violations: BJP, Congress also under scrutiny
by Danish Raza Nov 13, 2013
#AAP #Arvind Kejriwal #BJP #Congress #FCRA #foreign funds #Sushilkumar
Shinde
37
0
0
EmailPrint
The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) claims that the funding it received from
abroad is within the ambit of the law and the probe ordered into its
funding by the union government is not a cause for worry.
The AAP says that the Foreign Contribution Regulation Act (FCRA), the
law to regulate foreign funds received from abroad by Indian
organisations, does not apply to it because it never received any
foreign funding. “We receive money from Non-resident Indians holding
only Indian passports. In fact, we have a condition under which any one
holding a foreign passport – which technically makes him or her a
foreigner – cannot contribute to the AAP. Therefore, the question of
foreign contribution or violation of FCRA does not arise,” Pankaj Gupta,
AAP national secretary, told Firstpost.
According to FCRA, any financial contribution from any foreign source or
company to a political party registered in India is a criminal offence.
While the AAP has accused the government of indulging in a witch-hunt,
Union Home Minister Sushilkumar Shinde clarified that the probe into
AAP’s foreign funding was not a government initiative, but done
following a Delhi High Court order. “We have ordered the inquiry after
the Delhi High Court took note of the matter and passed instructions,”
PTI quoted Shinde as saying.
Based on a petition alleging that AAP has violated FCRA by receiving
foreign funding, Delhi HC ordered the Centre to investigate the same and
file a response by December 10.
“You go through the accounts again after AAP was formed. In case you
find anything in violation of FCRA, take action or you inform the court
about the status,” the court observed on October 23, after which, the
home ministry’s foreigners division sent a questionnaire to AAP.
Out of Rs 19 crore collected since the party’s launch, Rs 6 crore has
been given by NRIs, confirmed AAP. Since Monday, when news broke of the
Centre ordering a probe into the party’s foreign funding, it has
received Rs 32 lakh as donations from supporters living abroad, said
Pankaj Gupta.
This is not an isolated case where the foreign funding of a political
party has been questioned. The Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR),
a Delhi-based NGO, filed a PIL in Delhi High Court in January alleging
that the Congress and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) have violated the
Representation of People’s Act (RPA) 1951 and Foreign Contribution
(Regulation) Act (FCRA) by taking donations from government companies
and foreign sources, prohibited under both the legislations.
Shinde_PTI_14March
Sushilkumar Shinde . PTI
London-based Vedanta Resources and its subsidiary companies in India –
Sterlite, Sesa Goa and MALCO – donated several crores of rupees to major
political parties such as the Congress and the BJP, said the petition.
In their counter affidavits, the home ministry, Congress and BJP argued
that an Indian subsidiary of a foreign company making donations to
political party is legal if the majority of stakes in the foreign
company are held by an Indian. The case will be heard next in January
2014.
Sanjay Kaul, spokesperson for the BJP, told Firstpost, “The law of the
land should be followed in all cases. If the civil society believes that
there something wrong in funding of a political party, it should move
court.”
ALSO SEE
Why the application of FCRA to Kejriwal’s AAP is bizarre
Why the application of FCRA to Kejriwal’s AAP is bizarre
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