Expecting FCRA Bill, Congress issues whip for MPs, Opposition allies to follow

On Thursday, Mizoram Chief Minister Lalduhoma met Shah and handed over a memorandum expressing concerns over the Bill. He said Shah indicated it would be taken up in the Lok Sabha on August 12 and had assured him it would carry no retrospective provision. “The Home Minister assured me that the retrospective clause will not be there,” he had told The Indian Express.

During a meeting at Rajya Sabha Leader of the Opposition Mallikarjun Kharge’s office Friday morning, the Congress leadership advised its allies to make sure that MPs of all parties are present in the House from Monday onwards, said sources.

“We are anticipating that Amit Shah might make an appearance when the FCRA Bill is taken up for discussion since it concerns the Home Ministry. And we would want all MPs to be present in the House when Shah comes,” said a source present at the meeting on Friday.

The Opposition, since the beginning of the Monsoon Session, has been demanding that Shah make a statement on the police action on protesters during the July 20 march to Parliament, leading to disruptions and a logjam. On Thursday, Rajya Sabha Chairman and Vice-President C P Radhakrishnan told Rijiju to “echo the sentiments of the Opposition” to Shah and “consider the request” for his presence in the House.

Congress whip in Lok Sabha., Manickam Tagore, told The Indian Express: “We are prepared for the delimitation (Bill) and FCRA Bills next week. We know Amit Shah has been missing for 12 days from the House. Now they will try to divert the narrative from the students’ protests in the country.”

A senior Samajwadi Party MP said the party is sure to back the collective agenda of the Opposition. “We have stood with the Opposition, and we will continue to do so. If needed, we will issue a whip. But it might not be needed as all our MPs are present in the House anyway,” said the MP. “We still don’t know if Amit Shah will come to the House for FCRA Bill because the government may send MoS (Home) Nityanand Rai for the discussion on the Bill.”

The FCRA Bill has been contentious as there are concerns among Christian organisations over a provision in the Bill that they say gives a government-designated authority retrospective powers over assets of organisations whose FCRA registration has lapsed.

A senior TMC MP told The Indian Express that the party has conveyed to all its MPs to be present in the House from Monday. “Some parties issue a formal whip, some do it informally. All Opposition MPs have been told to be in Parliament starting Monday,” said the MP.

The FCRA Bill is politically sensitive for BJP, as many churches and Christian institutions have been built using foreign contributions, regulated under the FCRA. With the party seeking to expand its footprint among Christians, particularly in Kerala, it is keen to address these concerns.

The government had on Wednesday signalled that the FCRA Bill would not have any penalising retrospective provision.

Sources in the Opposition said that the parties will likely take part in the discussion on the Bill but will oppose it and try to corner the government over its repeated demand for Shah to give a statement in the House on the alleged excesses against protesters on July 20.