Noted lawyer Indira Jaising's Lawyers Collective on Thursday condemned the Union Home Ministry's order of suspending the FCRA registration for six months, saying it was a blatant attempt on the Centre's part to victimize the organization and its office bearers.
Issuing a statement, the organisation said it was nothing but a gross misuse of the FCRA Act which is being used to suppress any form of dissent.
"It is far too well known that both Anand Grover and Indira Jaising have represented several persons in their professional capacity as lawyers in several cases against the government and the functionaries including the BJP president Amit Shah protesting his discharge in the Sorabudin murder case. The Lawyers Collective intends to challenge the order as unconstitutional and required to be set aside," the statement said.
"The order/show cause notice is a malafide act and an act of vindictiveness on the part of the government. This is being done because of the cases that Lawyers Collective ('LC') and its Trustees, Indira Jaising and Anand Grover, are involved in, including but are not limited to Sanjiv Bhatt, Yakub Memon and Priya Pillai. The aim is to destroy the credibility of LC by leaking it to the media, before even serving it on LC. LC till today has not received the order purportedly issued on May 31, though it is available to the press," it added.
The 'Lawyers' Collective'stated that all the foreign contribution ('FC') received were spent for the purposes received and accounted for.
"The allegation against Jaising was based on the footing that she was a government servant, who was prohibited from receiving FC under the FCRA. However, she was a public servant and not a government servant, on whom there was no bar to receive FC. In any event, FC was received only by LC and Jaising was only paid remuneration for her services rendered to LC, on whom there is no prohibition. This aspect has not even been looked at by the authorities," the statement said.
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The organisation has claimed that it had entered into legitimate contracts with foreigners to provide services in India and abroad.
"Expenses were incurred for that reason. There is no violation of FCRA at all.The receipt of FC in FC-utilisation account and, opening of certain bank accounts, transfer of FC from FC-utilization to another utilisation account and from local accounts to FC-utilisation has been explained in detail in the Association reply dated to the Inspection Report but not considered," the statement said.
"No money was spent on rallies or dharnas having any political hue or colour. FCRA, 2010 was not applicable for expenses incurred in 2009, while in 2011 and 2014, it was spent from domestic/United Nations funding, which is exempt from FCRA," it added.
The notice, which was yesterday issued by the Home Ministry, said it has "prima facie" concluded that the NGO violated various provisions of the FCRA. It also said the records made available by the NGO "were not satisfactory and did not provide adequate explanation vis-a-vis the violations found and pointed out".
The notice also said it was "really surprising how a senior law officer such as an ASG can simultaneously and for such a long period be on the rolls of a private entity, being paid (out of foreign contribution) for undisclosed purposes in gross violation of rules."
Indira Jaising's organisation has allegedly received foreign funding between 2006 and 2007 and 2013 and 2014.
The Home Ministry alleges it found discrepancy in the filing of annual returns by the NGO where Jaising, who served as Additional Solicitor General in the UPA government, was functioning as Secretary. It has asked the NGO to submit its reply within 30 days.