Amnesty International Shuts Down India Operations, Accuses Govt Of ‘Witch-Hunt’ | What You Need To Know

In its recent reports, the organisation had raised questions on alleged rights violations during the February Delhi riots and in Jammu and Kashmir after the abrogation of Article 370.

New Delhi: Amnesty International has finally halted its operations in India after its bank accounts were completely frozen by the government bringing all its work to a halt. In a statement released on Tuesday, the organisation said it was forced to let go of its staff in India and pause all its ongoing campaign and research work.

"The fact that the government is now portraying this lawful fundraising model as money-laundering is evidence that the overbroad legal framework is maliciously activated when human rights activists and groups challenge the government’s grave inactions and excesses," said Amnesty.

“The continuing crackdown on Amnesty International India over the last two years and the complete freezing of bank accounts is not accidental. The constant harassment by government agencies including the Enforcement Directorate is a result of our unequivocal calls for transparency in the government, more recently for accountability of the Delhi police and the Government of India regarding the grave human rights violations in the Delhi riots and Jammu & Kashmir. For a movement that has done nothing but raise its voices against injustice, this latest attack is akin to freezing dissent,” said Avinash Kumar, Executive Director of Amnesty International India.

'Amnesty receiving illegal funds from abroad' 

The government has said that Amnesty has been receiving foreign funds illegally.

In 2018, the Enforcement Directorate had carried out searches at the headquarters of Amnesty International in Bangalore.

The raids were conducted for an alleged violation of the foreign exchange act.

Amnesty International India has said it stands in full compliance with all applicable Indian and international laws.

'No ED investigation against Amnesty International India Foundation'

There is no ED investigation against Amnesty International India Foundation, which declared halting its operations in the country, but against a private company linked to the NGO that allegedly received dubious export proceeds worth over Rs 51 crore, government sources told news agency PTI.

They said the Enforcement Directorate, a federal probe agency to check money laundering and forex violation crimes, is investigating two entities -- Amnesty International India Pvt Ltd and Indians for Amnesty International Trust.

Both are being probed under the criminal sections of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) and under the civil proceedings of the Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA), they said.

The agency had issued a show-cause notice to Amnesty International India Pvt Ltd last September for alleged contravention of FEMA to the tune of over Rs 51 crore.

"Amnesty International India Pvt Ltd has allegedly received export proceed of Rs 51.72 crore during financial year 2013-14 to 2018-19 from Amnesty International, UK."

"Investigation proved that no services were exported and the amounts so received were in contravention to the provisions of the FEMA and PMLA," a senior officer was quoted by PTI.

The contravention has led to "freezing" of balance deposit in the bank accounts of Amnesty India International Pvt Ltd and Indians for Amnesty International Trust, the officer said.

Sources said this freezing order was challenged by the two entities before the Karnataka High Court and the ED order was upheld by the court.

"No other fund except for alleged export proceeds received from Amnesty International,UK is under investigation or freezing under the law," the officer said.

A look at some of the facts:

In 2018 October, Amnesty alleged that a 10-hour-long raid was conducted, where a group of officers entered its premises and locked the gates behind them and bothered the NGO officials with information and documents that were already available in the public domain or filed with the relevant government authorities.

However, it is to be noted that the raids were conducted after alleged violations of FEMA. ED officials had then said that raids were conducted at two locations in Bengaluru in connection with a foreign exchange contravention case against the NGO.  They said ED was looking at a possible and alleged violation of the FEMA linked to an earlier Union home ministry's probe into the NGO's accounts related to Foreign Contribution Regulation Act (FCRA) funds.

On 22 October 2019, Amnesty International testified at the US Congressional hearing on the situation of human rights in South Asia with specific focus on abrogation of Article 370. Two weeks later, it alleged that its offices and the residence of one of its directors were raided by the CBI.

CBI had then said that the raids were conducted to probe allegations of violation of the FDI norms. In order to evade FCRA, Amnesty (UK) has remitted Rs 10 crore to Amnesty's Indian entities, classified as FDI, without the MHA's approval, CBI officials had said.

Amnesty has alleged that after it released an update on an investigative brief on the complicity of Delhi police in the riots which claimed the lives of at least 53 people, provided impetus to the government to “harass” it. It has said that it came to know that all its bank accounts were completely frozen on 10 September 2020.

However, it is noteworthy that freezing of accounts was done as  Karnataka High Court  upheld the ED order, when  Amnesty challenged it before High Court.

(With additional information from PTI)