New Delhi: In the wake of the US saying on Thursday that it will take up with India, the shutting down of a US-based Christian charity NGO Compassion International, New Delhi has reacted cautiously, with the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) saying that “any NGO has to operate within laws” and that it is a “matter of law enforcement”. The MEA however did not elaborate on the case. Government sources later told this newspaper that there were “some taxation issues” with the NGO.
Meanwhile, according to news agency reports from Washington, the US said it would take up the matter with India and sought a “transparent process” for foreign NGOs in the country, saying the Christian charity has been facing “significant challenges” for some time. Compassion International is said to be shutting down its India operations after it was put under ‘prior permission category’.
When a donor organisation is put under this category, it is barred from funding any Indian NGO without the government’s approval. The home ministry had reportedly said it was unlikely to reconsider the decision, notwithstanding appeals by American authorities.
