31-Member Parliamentary Panel to Examine FCRA Amendment Bill

NEW DELHI, September 4, 2026: A 31-member Joint Parliamentary Committee has been constituted to scrutinise the controversial Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Amendment Bill, 2026, amid concerns from opposition parties and Christian organisations over its potential impact on NGOs receiving foreign contributions.

BJP MP Dr. Sanjay Jaiswal has been appointed chairperson of the committee, which was constituted three weeks after the Lok Sabha referred the proposed legislation to a parliamentary panel for detailed examination. Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla announced the committee’s composition on Thursday.

The panel comprises 21 members from the Lok Sabha and 10 from the Rajya Sabha. It has been directed to submit its report by the last day of the first week of the forthcoming winter session of Parliament. Its tenure may be extended if additional time is required for consultations with stakeholders.

The constitution of the committee was delayed as political parties took time to nominate their representatives.

NDA has 19 members

The ruling BJP-led NDA has 19 representatives on the committee. Among them are BJP MPs Bhartruhari Mahtab, Tejasvi Surya, Kamlesh Jangde, Mukeshkumar Chandrakaant Dalal, Nishikant Dubey, Vishnu Dayal Ram, Ananta Nayak and Arvind Dharmapuri.

Other NDA members include Sanjay Kumar Jha of the Janata Dal (United), Lavu Sri Krishna Devarayalu of the Telugu Desam Party and Praful Patel of the Nationalist Congress Party.

The opposition representation includes four Congress MPs — Anto Antony, Captain Viriato Fernandes, Muhammed Hamdullah Sayeed and Kali Charan Munda.

Samajwadi Party MP Zia Ur Rehman, Trinamool Congress MP Kalyan Banerjee, DMK MP A. Raja, Shiv Sena MP Naresh Ganpat Mhaske, NCP (Sharadchandra Pawar) MP Supriya Sule and Indian Union Muslim League MP E. T. Mohammed Basheer are among the other opposition members.

Rajya Sabha members named

The Rajya Sabha contingent includes BJP MPs C. Sadanandan Master, Harsh Vardhan Shringla, Ujjwal Deorao Nikam, Alka Gurjar and Sat Paul Sharma.

Praful Patel and Sanjay Kumar Jha represent the NCP and JD(U), respectively, while Congress is represented by Christopher Manickam. TMC’s Menaka Guruswamy and DMK’s P. Wilson are also members of the panel.

Christian organisations raise concerns

The proposed amendments have drawn criticism from opposition parties, including the DMK, as well as Christian organisations that have expressed concern about their possible implications for NGOs run by religious and charitable bodies.

Critics have particularly questioned a provision relating to the assets of organisations whose FCRA registration is cancelled or not renewed. They contend that the provision could give the executive significant powers over the assets of such organisations.

The government has rejected the concerns raised by critics but agreed to send the Bill for detailed parliamentary scrutiny, with the stated objective of examining the provisions and building wider consensus.

The Joint Parliamentary Committee is now expected to examine the proposed changes, hear representations from stakeholders and assess their implications for organisations operating under the FCRA before submitting its report to Parliament.

News Credits: The Times of India