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The Minister of State for Home Affairs, Sh. S. Regupathy introduced
in the Rajya Sabha today the Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Bill, 2006.
The Bill seeks to regulate the acceptance, utilization and accounting of foreign
contribution and acceptance of foreign hospitality by a person or an association
and repeal the existing Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Act, 1976 (FCRA).
The salient features
of the Bill are as follows:
(i)
The preamble has been reworded to prohibit acceptance and utilization
of foreign contribution or foreign hospitality for any activities detrimental
to the national interest.
(ii)
Any amount received by any person from any foreign source by
way of fee, payment in lieu of certain services rendered, etc. will be excluded
from the definition of foreign contribution.
(iii)
Organizations of political nature, not being political parties,
will be placed in the prohibited category for accepting foreign contribution.
(iv)
Association or company engaged in the production or broadcast
of audio news or audio visual news or current affairs programmes through any
electronic mode or any other mode of mass communication and correspondent
or columnist, cartoonist, editor, owner of such Association or company will
now be placed in prohibited category for accepting foreign contribution.
(v)
Use of foreign contribution or any income arising out of it
for speculative business will be proscribed.
(vi)
Administrative expenses have been capped at fifty percent of
the foreign contribution and any such expenses beyond that limit may be incurred
only with the prior approval of the Central Government. (vii)
Provision is made to specify the persons who can and the areas
where, the purpose for which, and the sources from which foreign contribution
can be accepted only with prior permission of the Central Government.
(viii)
Registration will be granted for a period of five years with
a provision for automatic renewal for a period of five years to all applicants
except those who are defaulters.
(ix)
A specified fee will be charged for registration, grant of
prior permission and renewal.
(x) Reasons for rejection of registration/prior permission will
be conveyed to the applications to ensure greater transparency and accountability.
This will be in harmony with the provisions laid down under the Right to Information
Act, 2005. (xi)
Registration certificate can be suspended for a maximum period
of 180 days. (xii)
Provisions have been made for cancellation of registration
after giving reasonable opportunity for hearing. (xiii)
Foreign contribution will have to be received through a single
band account. However, unlike the present Act, the recipient organization
would be permitted to open one or more account in one or more Scheduled Banks
to utilize the foreign contribution. (xiv)
Countrywide information/database about receipt of foreign remittances
more than a specific amount, or suspicious transactions received by a person/association
through banking channels shall be created, for keeping a watch over receipt
and utilization of such foreign contributions. (xv)
Registration received by fraud, misrepresentation or false
documents have been made punishable with imprisonment up to 5 years. (xvi)
Provision has been made for disposal of assets created out
of foreign contribution of defunct/inoperative organizations as per the prescribed
procedure.
(xvii)
Provision has been made for compounding of certain offences
under the Bill.
It is expected
that the new law and its effective implementation thorough utilization of
tools of information and communication technology (ICT) will put in place
a more efficient system to regulate the acceptance, utilization and accounting
of foreign contribution in the country by ensuring greater accountability,
transparency and simplification.
OK/RK
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FOREIGN CONTRIBUTION (REGULATION) BILL, 2006 INTRODUCED IN RAJYA SABHA
