Organisations engaged in religious conversion shall be denied FCRA registration: Madras HC
The Madras High Court has ruled that organizations involved in religious conversion activities are ineligible for Foreign Contribution Regulation Act (FCRA) registration. The court emphasized that while non-religious or inclusive organizations may receive foreign funds, those with proselytizing missions may be restricted to protect the nation's secular fabric.
Why it matters
This ruling sets a significant legal precedent for how religious organizations in India manage foreign funding and interact with government regulatory frameworks.
A Division Bench of the Madras High Court (Madurai) has said religious organisations, whose activities would not affect the nation’s secular fabric and social amity, are entitled to obtain Foreign Contribution Regulation Act (FCRA) registration. But organisations engaged in converting people of one religious faith to another shall be denied FCRA registration.
The court was hearing the Civil Miscellaneous Appeal filed by Kanzeon Public Charitable Trust in Kodaikanal in Dindigul district. The appellant, a trust founded in 2021 and registered under Section 12AB and 80G of the Income Tax Act, 1961, sought certificate of registration under the provisions of the Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Act, 2010. The appellant’s application was rejected. Challenging the same, the appeal was filed.
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