Many non-governmental organizations (NGO’s) operating in India receive foreign funds. Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) received a majority of seats in India’s Lok Sabha (lower house of parliament) in May 2014 national elections. National elections in 2019 and 2024 have continued the BJP majority in Lok Sabha control.

The BJP worldview is that India will be a Hindu state with values called Hindutva. Any different belief system is not accepted. BJP government policy sees registered non-Hindu NGOs as hindering their Hindutva cause. One solution is to suspend government licenses for foreign currency sent to India and increase NGO financial reporting requirements to the central government in New Delhi. This central government action limits freedom of voluntary association for the Indian people inside and outside of the country. …

This central government intervention suspending each foreign currency exchange license in the country is an example leading to a loss of freedom for each NGO operating in the country. Each NGO uses private funds provided from outside the country to address physical and social needs of its citizens not provided by the Indian central and/or state government. Each license loss leads to no money available where the NGO ceases operation in the country leading to a loss of individual freedom for the Indian people who have different beliefs from Hinduism.

The India MHA cancelling this number of FCRA licenses shows a clear purpose to remove non-Hindu NGOs from operating to help its citizens without use of Indian taxpayer money. This is not a subtle action by the current Indian government.