The Other Media’ NGO that organised protests in direction of Vedanta Sterlite plant beneath scanner: Home Ministry tells Rajya Sabha

On Wednesday, April 5, the Ministry of Home Affairs educated the Rajya Sabha that it was analyzing complaints in direction of an NGO named The Other Media for misusing abroad funds to arrange protests throughout the Vedanta Sterlite copper plant in Thoohtukudi district of Tamil Nadu. 

Congress MP Naranbhai J Rathwa had inquired “whether the Home Ministry has received any complaints against The Other Media for misusing foreign funds for organizing protests and demonstrations around Vedanta’s Sterlite Copper plant in Thoothukudi in Tamil Nadu.” In addition to this, the details and standing of the case in direction of the NGO had been moreover sought. The Congress MP moreover inquired regarding the particulars of the funds acquired and utilized by The Other Media and violations of the Foreign Contribution Regulation Act (FCRA). 

Moreover, it was moreover inquired if the federal authorities is considering imposing a ban on this NGO and if not, then what causes it may give.

Responding to the Congress MP’s query, Minister of State for Home, Nityanand Rai in a written reply to Rathwa educated that the ministry has acquired “representations/complaints alleging violation of the FCRA, 2010 by the association of ‘The Other Media, New Delhi’.”

Minister Rai moreover acknowledged that the ministry has moreover acquired inputs of the sector firm and that an abnormal questionnaire was issued to the NGO in question and a reply has moreover been acquired. 

“Accordingly, Standard questionnaire was issued to the association and a reply has been received,” the reply acknowledged. 

The Minister extra acknowledged that in case the provisions of the FCRA, 2010, are found to have been violated by The Other Media, its certificates may be cancelled.

In case violations of provisions of the FCRA, 2010 are found, the certificates of FCRA registration of the affiliation may be cancelled beneath Section 14 of the Act,” the reply acknowledged.

The affiliation utilized 2.79 crores of the three.54 crore in abroad contributions it acquired over the previous three fiscal years—2019–20, 2020–21, and 2021–22.

Notably, The Other Media (TOM) is an FCRA-NGO with the registration amount DL 231660085, and its chairperson or chief functionary is Nityanand Jayaraman, a self-identified environmental activist.

Reportedly, TOM has acquired funding from uncertain organizations identical to the Catholic Organization for Relief and Development Aid (CORDAID) of the Netherlands, the World Association for Christian Communication in Canada, the Christian Conference of Asia, and Trócaire, the official worldwide assist group of the Irish Catholic Church.

Bread for the World (BfW), a “globally active development and relief agency of the Protestant Churches in Germany,” has moreover donated money to TOM.

All of TOM’s donations have been listed beneath “Activities other than those mentioned,” though their account statements (Form FC-6) state that their affiliation is “educational and social in nature.”

Notably, in 2021, Vedanta Group obtained permission to reopen the plant to supply medical oxygen all through the Covid pandemic. TN authorities had appealed to the apex court docket docket that the plant must current oxygen solely to the state nevertheless the court docket docket rejected it. It operated for 3 months after which the premises had been as soon as extra shut as quickly because the second wave was backed. In December 2021, there have been experiences that the locals had claimed they’d been cheated inside the title of the protests and wished it to reopen.