Bill to regulate foreign contributions received by organisations

New Delhi, Dec 18 (UNI) The Foreign Contribution Regulation Bill, 2006, which was introduced in the Rajya Sabha today, aims to prohibiting acceptance and utilisation of foreign contribution or hospitality for any activities detrimental to national interest.

The bill, which was introduced by Minister of State for Home S Regupathy in the upper house, would consolidate the law to regulate the acceptance, utilisation and accounting of foreign contribution or foreign hospitality by certain individuals or associations or companies.

It would replace the Foreign Contribution Regulation Act, 1976 which was enacted to ensure that the foreign contribution and foreign hospitality is not utilised to affect or influence electoral politics, public servants, judges and other people working in important areas of national life like journalists, printers and publishers of newspapers, etc.

The Act, which was last amended in 1984, also seeks to regulate flow of foreign funds to voluntary organizations with objective of preventing any possible diversion of such funds towards activities detrimental to the national interest and to ensure that such individuals and organizations may function in a manner consistent with the values of sovereign democratic republic.

However, the new bill was required in view of the recent developments such as change in internal security scenario, an increased influence of voluntary organizations, spread of use of communication and information technology, quantum jump in the amount of foreign contribution being received, and large scale growth in the number of registered organizations.

Under the new bill organizations of political nature, not being political parties, has been placed in the prohibited category for accepting foreign contribution. Hoever, any amount received by any person from any foreign source, by way of fee, payment in lieu of certain services rendered, will be excluded from the definition of foreign contribution.

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 these Association or companies will now be placed in prohibited category for accepting foreign contribution.

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.

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