NEW DELHI: Amnesty International, Charity, and Security Network, and Human Rights Watch, have called upon the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) to review India’s actions related to human rights and its crackdown on dissenting voices, alleging that the Indian government is exploiting anti-terror financing measures to stifle activism and non-profit organizations.
In their latest report, the global human rights watchdog emphasized that FATF members would initiate their fourth periodic review of India’s efforts to combat illicit funding. They contended that Indian authorities have manipulated FATF recommendations to curtail civic freedoms and undermine rights to expression, association, and peaceful assembly. The brunt of this crackdown has been borne by human rights groups, and activists focused on defending marginalized populations.
The report underlines that the Indian government has employed restrictive laws such as the Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Act (FCRA), the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA), and the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) as tools to clamp down on human rights defenders, activists, and non-profit organizations. These actions are seen as contravening both FATF’s standards and international human rights norms.
Aakar Patel, head of the board at Amnesty International India, criticized the Indian authorities for using purported foreign funding and terrorism allegations as instruments to target, intimidate, harass, and silence critics. Patel argued that these actions flouted FATF standards.
The report highlights how the 2002 Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) was enacted by the Indian government to meet FATF membership conditions. However, this law has subsequently been utilized to intimidate and harass human rights defenders, activists, and non-profit organizations by supplementing charges under the FCRA, seizing their assets, and imposing stringent bail conditions.
Amnesty International India has been a victim of PMLA action, as its bank accounts were frozen in September 2020, effectively hampering its work for the past three years due to a lack of funds.
Meenakshi Ganguly, Deputy Asia Director at Human Rights Watch, cautioned against India’s three laws, collectively creating a dangerous arsenal with severe consequences for civil society and human rights activists. Ganguly urged the FATF to prevent the Indian government from exploiting its recommendations for political purposes.
The report also notes that since the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) came to power in 2014, the government has used domestic legal provisions to silence critics, cancel their foreign funding licenses, and prosecute them using counterterrorism laws and financial regulations. The Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Act, which originally aimed to prevent foreign interference in Indian politics, has been repurposed, leading to the cancellation of licenses for over 20,600 non-profit organizations in the last decade.
Additionally, the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act has been misused to arrest and detain activists, particularly those protesting the Citizenship Amendment Act. This report contends that these laws are used to keep government critics locked up for extended periods and exploit the judicial process to persecute and punish them.
