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NEW DELHI: Union minister Kiren Rijiju Wednesday strongly criticised the opposition over what he called a “misleading campagin” against the foreign funding regulatory bill, which has now been sent to Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) for deeper deliberations.Rijiju said India was not a “banana republic” and that there should be rules and regulations to spend foreign funds.The proposed legislation, aimed to manage the gap in the regulation of foregin fundings to NGOs and curb the proselytisation, was fiercely criticised the opposition that termed the bill “anti minority”.The bill that intends to monitor the flow of foreign capital was referred by Lok Sabha to the the JPC, with the opposition, particularly the Congress, questioning how the “RSS is freely getting foreign contributions”.Akhilesh yadav said the government has never brought a bill that is not against minorities, possibley referring to Waqf and CAA bills.“None of the provision in FCRA Amendment bill targets minority institutions, oppn campaigning to mislead certain communities; India is not a ‘banana republic’ there should be rules and regulations to spend foreign funds”, Union parliamentary affairs minister Kiren Rijiju said in Lok Sabha.When asked if the duration of the House session can be extended for the discussion, Rijiju, during the press brief, said: “We are saying that if the Congress states even tomorrow morning at 11:00 AM that they are ready for the discussion, we will extend the time. We are ready for the discussion. You should ask Congress why they got scared and why they fled. I never imagined the Congress would become so weak.”
Bill sent to JPC
Earlier, Union minister Nityanand Rai moved the motion in the Lok Sabha after the House resumed proceedings following its morning adjournment.“That the Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Amendment Bill, 2026, be referred to a Joint Committee of the Houses consisting of 21 Members of this House to be nominated by the Hon’ble Speaker, Lok Sabha, and 10 members of Rajya Sabha to be nominated by Hon’ble Chairman, Rajya Sabha,” the motion moved by the junior home minister stated.
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According to the Supplementary List of Business for the Lok Sabha, the proposed Joint Committee will comprise 31 members, including 21 from the Lok Sabha and 10 from the Rajya Sabha.The committee will examine the Bill in detail and submit its report to Parliament by the last day of the first week of the Winter Session in 2026.The motion also specified that one-third of the committee’s total membership would constitute the quorum for its meetings.
