The Union Home Ministry has cancelled the Foreign Contribution Regulation Act (FCRA) registration of Centre for Policy Research (CPR), a leading public policy research institution in New Delhi.
The Ministry suspended the FCRA registration of CPR that enabled it to receive foreign donations on February 27, 2023. The suspension on grounds of violation was initially for a period of 180 days, which was extended subsequently.
Editorial | Power against knowledge: On Centre for Policy Research FCRA licence suspension
Yamini Aiyar, President, CPR told The Hindu that the institution will weigh its options to seek justice.
The think tank is learnt to have received the cancellation order on January 10.
The Home Ministry website said the registration was cancelled on grounds of “violation”. One of the reasons cited is that the institute published reports on “current affairs programmes,” which is a violation of FCRA.
Ms. Aiyar told The Hindu that the institution has been functioning within the framework of the law. “Its work has been built over decades to undertake globally recognised high quality research on issues that matter deeply to Indian public life and policy making,” she said.
“The cancellation of our FCRA is distressing, for it is a cancellation that is disproportionate and without adequate opportunity to be heard. We will weigh our options to seek justice. We remain committed to our core goals and remain steadfast in our belief that this matter will be resolved in line with constitutional values and guarantees,” Ms. Aiyar added.
In 2023, the Income Tax department had cancelled the tax exemption status of CPR. The office of the think tank in the national capital was surveyed by the IT department in September 2022.
The IT department alleged that the association made payments to persons who have not filed their personal Income Tax returns and raised questions about the books published by CPR being commercial in nature.
The think tank has denied the allegations and challenged the order in the Delhi High Court.
