Govt considering joint panel scrutiny of FCRA Amendment Bill amid Opposition objections

The government is considering referring the Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Amendment Bill, 2026, to a joint parliamentary committee for scrutiny. Congress, TMC and DMK have demanded its withdrawal, while the BJD supports further examination amid concerns over NGO funding and oversight

New Delhi: The government is considering sending ‘The Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Amendment Bill, 2026’ to a joint committee of both houses of Parliament, even as the Congress and some opposition parties have demanded that it be withdrawn, sources said on Tuesday.

The Congress and TMC were among the parties which raised the issue during the meeting of the Business Advisory Committee of the Rajya Sabha, though it was not part of the agenda, asking when the FCRA Bill will be taken up in the House, to which the government said a decision will be taken on it in due course of time. The two parties demanded that the bill be withdrawn, but others like BJD feel the bill could be sent to a joint committee of Parliament for further scrutiny.

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The DMK also wants the Bill to be withdrawn, the sources said. The Bill was introduced in the Lok Sabha on March 25 this year and proposes tighter government oversight on non-governmental organisations (NGOs) and foreign funding in the country. Government sources said it is considering sending the Bill to a joint committee of both Houses of Parliament and a motion may be brought in the Lok Sabha in this regard on Wednesday.

The Bill seeks to create a designated authority to manage and dispose of assets if an organisation loses its FCRA licence. The opposition parties which have raised strong objections to the FCRA Bill allege that it targets minorities as certain provisions will choke legitimate funding for Christian NGOs and minority-run social welfare and educational institutions.

But the government has made it clear that the proposed legislation is not religion-specific and is aimed at regulating foreign contributions. The Business Advisory Committee of the Rajya Sabha was chaired by Chairman C P Radhakrishnan and attended by Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju and leader of the house J P Nadda and opposition leaders Jairam Ramesh (Cong), Tiruchi Siva (DMK) and Sasmit Patra (BJD).

During the meeting, the BAC allotted two hours for ‘The Mines and Minerals (Development and Regulation) Amendment Bill, 2026’; two hours for ‘The Tribunals Reforms Bill, 2026’; three hours for ‘The National Co-operative Development Corporation (Amendment) Bill, 2026’; and 1.5 hours for ‘The Kerala (Alteration of Name) Bill, 2026. Later, Deputy Chairman Harivansh announced the decisions of the business advisory committee in the House.