Demanding “immediate unblocking of its domestic bank accounts”, the NGO said it was also now considering appropriate legal action against the “unfounded allegations and arbitrary penalties”.

NEW DELHI: Greenpeace India – the NGO whose seven bank accounts were frozen by the government for alleged violation of foreign currency rules – on Friday submitted its reply to home ministry’s month-old ‘show cause’ notice and rebutted all the charges made against it. The group, in its response, also accused the ministry for imposing arbitrary penalties on it in an attempt to “silence” it.

Demanding “immediate unblocking of its domestic bank accounts”, the NGO said it was also now considering appropriate legal action against the “unfounded allegations and arbitrary penalties”.

The home ministry had on April 9 suspended the Foreign Currency Regulation Act (FCRA) registration of the Greenpeace India for 180 days and frozen seven of its bank accounts, citing under-reporting and violation of foreign currency rules and gave it 30 days time to respond.
“We are confident that this response establishes our legitimacy beyond any doubt” said Samit Aich, executive director of Greenpeace India.

He said, “We have addressed every allegation made against us, and responded in a transparent and honest way throughout. In contrast, the ministry of home affairs (MHA) has used unfounded allegations and arbitrary penalties in a blatant attempt to silence us. We remain proud of our campaigns for clean air, water and affordable energy, and refuse to be intimidated by such dirty tricks”.

In its order, the home ministry had said that during on-site inspection of accounts and records conducted on September 24 to 27 last year, it was found that the NGO had transferred foreign contributions in the FCRA-designated bank account and from there to five other accounts “without informing authority concerned”, which was a violation of rules.

Greenpeace India, however, noted that the ‘show cause’ notice is riddled with clerical errors, as well as unfounded allegations that undermine the MHA’s position. It accused the ministry of failing to respond to its own requests for documents and ‘leaking misinformation to the media instead of abiding by the principles of natural justice.’

Aich said, “We have been operating in India for over 14 years and have filed our accounts properly and reliably throughout this time. The MHA’s current attack simply does not stand up to scrutiny, and we are confident that expert analysis will support that claim. Let’s be clear: this is not about spreadsheets and sums. It is a cynical attempt to shut Greenpeace down by a ministry that lacks the courage to come out and say so directly.”

Greenpeace India also raised certain questions. It asked “How some of the MHA’s allegations relate to transactions that occurred several years before the 2010 FCRA act was even signed into law? And yet, the ministry attempts to apply this law retrospectively, which is clearly not justified”.

It also asked, “How the home ministry blocked funds sent from Greenpeace International on March 23, despite the Delhi high court order of January 20, 2015, which held that to deny access to those funds invoked principles of natural justice”.

Greenpeace India’s response to MHA’s ‘show case’ notice was delivered to the ministry on the day when members of prominent civil society organizations addressed a press conference here on Friday to protest against the alleged orchestrated clampdown on NGOs.

The groups also wrote an open letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi asking him to intervene to uphold democracy and the right to dissent.

TOI | May 9, 2015

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