CBI to file a supplementary report in case against Amnesty International India

The CBI will soon file a supplementary final report in its case against Amnesty International India Pvt Ltd (AIIPL) in which the agency is probing the role of the directors in the alleged violations of Foreign Contribution Regulation Act (FCRA), officials said.

The agency has given the assurance to a special court on Monday where it stated that its "final report is in the final stages" and would be filed on or before the next date of hearing, October 6, "without fail", they said.

The agency had filed a charge sheet before the special court against Amnesty International India Pvt Ltd (AIIPL) and its then head Aakar Patel in January 2022.

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The court has not taken cognisance of the charge sheet yet. It had asked the agency to probe the role of directors on which the agency had to file a supplementary final report, they said.

The agency had sought similar extensions from the court on at least three occasions earlier, they said.

During stern questioning, the investigation officer had conceded that Aakar Patel was neither the director nor the signatory of the alleged contracts at the relevant time, the special court had noted while asking the CBI to further probe the alleged role of directors.

"The prosecution is relying upon the statements of the signatories and directors of the company to prove that the accused (Patel) was in charge of the affairs of the company. The role of signatories of the contract and directors of the company have not been investigated into," the special court had noted.

The CBI had told the court that it was found in the investigation regarding the role of directors and the signatories that the violation of the Act in the alleged contracts was not within their knowledge and hence they were not arrayed as accused.

A chartered accountant who is a CBI witness in the case had said that in his report he had mentioned that nine contracts will be under the category of Social Programme falling under Section 11 (1) of FCRA.

He had said this report was also marked to the then COO of Amnesty International India P Ltd on email along with Aakar Patel, the court had pointed out.

It had asked why the then COO who was a signatory of the alleged contracts was not arrayed as an accused and he was cited as a witness by the IO.

"Further knowledge of the director of the company can be attributed since the report was submitted to the COO of the company also," the special court had noted while directing the CBI to carry on with further probe.

The case was registered against Amnesty International India Pvt Ltd (AIIPL), Indians For Amnesty International Trust (IAIT), Amnesty International India Foundation Trust (AIIFT), Amnesty International South Asia Foundation (AISAF), and others in November 2019.

It was alleged that the provision of the FCRA and IPC were contravened by the aforesaid entities by receiving foreign contributions from Amnesty International UK through AIIPL even though prior registration or permissions were denied to AIIFT and other trusts under FCRA, the officials said.

After the searches that took place post-FIR, Amnesty International India alleged 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.

"Amnesty International India stands in full compliance with Indian and international law. Our work in India, as 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," the Amnesty said in the statement.

According to a complaint filed by the Home Ministry to the CBI, AIIPL is a 'for-profit' company. It was observed that the London-based Amnesty International worked through four companies, which have been named by the CBI in the case.

It is alleged that a payment of Rs 10 crore, classified as Foreign Direct Investment, was remitted to Amnesty India from the London office without taking the home ministry's approval.

Another Rs 26 crore has been remitted to Amnesty India, "primarily from the UK-based entities", it alleged.

"All such receipts have subsequently been expended on Amnesty's NGO activities in India, in violation of FCRA," it charged.