New Delhi, Nov 15 (UNI) The Central Bureau of Investigation conducted searches at three locations of the Amnesty International including Bengaluru and Delhi in connection with an alleged violation of Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Act.
As per sources, the whole exercise went on for around 10 hours as the probe agency sleuths raided the offices in Delhi and Bengaluru.
The case was registered by the probe agency on November 5 on a complaint by the Ministry of Home Affairs which was against the Amnesty International India Pvt Ltd, Indians for Amnesty International Trust (IAIT) , Amnesty International India Foundation Trust (AIIFT), Amnesty International South Asia Foundation (AISAF) and unknown others for alleged violations of rules in involving foreign funding.
It was alleged that the provision of FRCA and IPC were contravened by them by receiving foreign contributions from the Amnesty International UK through AIIPL, even though the registrations and permissions were denied to the AIIFT and the other trusts under the FCRA.
A volunteer in the Amnesty International India, had also confirmed the raids conducted by the CBI officials, in the office located in Indiranagar locality in the city Friday.
Meanwhile, the Amnesty International has said that ‘Over the past year, a pattern of harassment has emerged every time Amnesty International India stands up and speaks out against human rights violations in India.’
It further said that ‘Amnesty International India stands in full compliance with Indian and International law. Our work in India and elsewhere is to uphold and fight for universal human rights. These are the same values that are enshrined in the Indian Constitution and flow from a long and rich Indian tradition of pluralism, tolerance and dissent.’
