By Don Aguiar
Mumbai, April 9, 2026: After targeting Muslims with the Waqf amendment, the Indian government has now turned to Christians with the Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Amendment Bill, aiming to tighten control over NGOs and restrict foreign funds. This is unconstitutional and must not be allowed.
The Modi government withdrew the bill after strong opposition from church bodies and political groups in Kerala. The retreat highlighted church unity when legal rights were at stake and raised questions about state power over institutions.
The episode left many wondering whether civil society can trust a regime intent on executing its agenda, despite gestures of goodwill toward bishops in Kerala.
Tactical withdrawal
The FCRA Amendment Bill, introduced in the Lok Sabha on 25 March by Minister of State for Home Affairs Nityanand Rai, was pulled from the agenda on 1 April after backlash from Christian organizations, opposition parties and political actors, especially in election‑bound Kerala.
Ministers framed the move as a matter of legislative priorities, a common explanation when governments retreat but do not wish to admit defeat.
It was a tactical withdrawal by a government that had overreached and then discovered, too late, that institutions in India still retain enough memory, structure and social reach to force New Delhi to step back.
This bill did not emerge in isolation. Amendments in 2020 had already tightened spending rules, restricted sub‑granting and increased dependence on central permission.
Thousands of FCRA registrations have since been cancelled. The burden has not been politically neutral, however neutral the law may appear on paper.
More than a Christian grievance
The issue cannot be reduced to a Christian grievance alone. Christian institutions are integral to India’s educational, medical and social infrastructure.
They serve not only Christians but Hindus, Muslims, Sikhs, Buddhists, Jains and those with no religion. In many regions they provide services the state either cannot deliver or does poorly.
The bill would empower authorities to seize assets built by religious and charitable organizations whenever their FCRA registration lapses or is cancelled, even due to bureaucratic delay.
India’s legitimate concerns about terrorism and foreign interference are understood. But India’s Christians are not a security threat. For decades, churches and their global partners have built schools, hospitals and orphanages serving millions, especially tribal communities and the rural poor.
India’s Christians are patriotic citizens who have served in the military, courts and civil service. They are not agents of foreign powers.
The Christian community rejects forced conversion and coercive proselytization. Christianity in India is rooted, indigenous and centuries old. Legislation that sweeps up faithful, law‑abiding citizens in a net designed for bad actors misrepresents them.
Call for dialogue
The bill would authorize seizure of assets built not by foreign governments but by the generosity of ordinary believers, who gave sacrificially for ministry among India’s poor. Hospitals and schools were built to serve, not to enrich the state.
History offers sobering parallels. The confiscation of Jewish communal properties in Europe during the 1930s and 1940s was accomplished through mechanisms that appeared procedural and administrative.
The intent may differ, but the structure is recognizable: regulatory authority used to transfer minority religious assets into state hands.
Indian organizations operate freely in the United States, raising funds under full legal protection. That same standard must apply to Christian organizations in India. Partnership cannot function on asymmetric terms. Donors gave to serve India’s poor, not to subsidize the state.
The government is called not merely to defer the bill but to withdraw it and open genuine dialogue with Christian communities before further action.
India is one of the world’s great civilizations, rich in culture, tradition and morality. Yet daily life often tells another story: a man beaten for worshiping differently, a woman calculating risk on her walk home, a child learning fear. Too often, communal harmony and secularism are sidelined.
India’s greatness lies not in autocratic communal agendas but in how it treats its people — as a democratic, secular nation co‑existing in harmony.
Don Aguiar is the former Maharashtra state president of the All-India Catholic Association and served as secretary general of the Bombay Catholic Sabha. He writes on the intersection of global affairs and Catholic faith, offering reflections that connect contemporary events with a faith-informed perspective.
The views expressed in this piece are those of the author alone and do not necessarily reflect the views of Matters India.
(Photo by Ministry of Parliamentary Affairs/Government Open Data License-India)