On Aug 12, Congress MP KC Venugopal sent a letter to Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla, demanding he intervene in the Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) examining the FCRA Amendment Bill, 2026, which was introduced on March 25.
But the bill’s core changes—extending the bar on foreign contributions to any person and mandating the transfer of an organisation’s assets to a government‑designated authority upon cancellation—have sparked a chorus of opposition from all major parties.
The 31‑member JPC was intended for wider consultation, yet Venugopal says it has not invited written memoranda or held oral hearings from NGOs, charitable bodies, religious institutions, or state governments.
He urges the speaker to issue a public notice for written submissions and to schedule oral evidence, insisting that members debate clause‑by‑clause before any vote.
A Delhi‑based NGO that supports under‑privileged children warned that the new provisions could strip it of foreign funding and cripple its day‑to‑day operations.
If the committee fails to extend its reporting deadline, the bill may be rushed into the Winter Session, but Speaker Birla could still push it through if he deems the deliberations sufficient.