Activist and founder of the NGO Act Now for Harmony and Democracy (ANHAD) Shabnam Hashmi today said she is stepping down as its trustee, paving way for a young team to lead the organisation.
The foreign funding license of the NGO, formed in the aftermath of the 2002 Gujarat riots, was cancelled by the home ministry in December last year citing "undesirable activities against public interest".
"I am leaving ANHAD to a younger team and they will continue to follow the ideology of secularism. They are committed to the same idea of India as I am. However, I am leaving ANHAD, not retiring. I will always be there to fight fascist forces as the present government," Hashmi told PTI, hinting that she might be taking on a larger role elsewhere.
However, it is not just Hashmi who is walking away from ANHAD, but all its present trustees including rights activist, Harsh Mander, writer-activist Ram Puniyani, singer Shubha Mudgal, activist Kamla Bhasin among others too have left the NGO.
The new team comprises of young people who have varied fields of interests -- a researcher, sufi singer, young student activists and a writer.
"I wanted new people to come in. I didn't want my organisation to die with me. This is another generation of activists and they will do things their way. I want to be free to fight and don't want to get bogged down by daily administrative work. I have walked out of ANHAD, yes, but I will continue to work," Hashmi said.
Hashmi, who faced several income tax enquiries and two major home ministry enquiries in the last three years, has been one of the harshest critics of the Modi government.
Last year, ANHAD also ran into trouble after it was barred from receiving foreign funds.
On March 20, 2016, ANHAD's Foreign Contributions Regulation Act (FCRA) licence was renewed for a period of five years, but through a notice put up on the Ministry of Home Affairs' (MHA) website date December 15 last year, the licence was cancelled citing "undesirable activities against public interest".
Earlier, domestic donors, who contributed more than Rs 10,000 to the organisation, received legal notices asking them to explain why they gave the money to the NGO.
The new team starts work from June 16 officially.
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