Letters to the Editor — December 30, 2021

Denied

Consider this list of those from society the Missionaries of Charity caters to: refugees, abused women, the mentally challenged and the mentally ill, sick children, abandoned children, leprosy patients, people with AIDS, the aged and the convalescent. The Missionaries of Charity also has schools run by volunteers to teach abandoned street children, run soup kitchens and other services (free of charge), regardless of the person’s religion or social status. They are not a vote bank. Governments will not touch this list of people, and society ignores and marginalises them.

Parliament has legislated opacity for contributions received by political parties. The PM-CARES Fund, the other elephant in the room, has cocked a snook at the concept of accountability. One suspects that the selective heavy-handedness is perhaps due to an irksome combination — of the Charity being a popular, minority institution patronised by and headquartered in Trinamool Congress territory.

R. Thomas Paul,

Bengaluru

lt is no surprise that the Government has done what it has, quoting the usual, baseless allegations of conversions by the organisation. The Missionaries of Charity has been rendering yeomen social and humanitarian services. The heartless move will only sadden those who are perceptive and know that the organisation serves the really needy, irrespective of their caste, community, creed or religion.

Tharcius S. Fernando,

Chennai

The Government’s move raises more troubling questions than answers. If “adverse inputs” were the major reason behind its move not to renew the FCRA registration of the Missionaries of Charity, the Government’s failure to state in unequivocal terms what those “inputs” were is quite baffling. In recent months, the licences of prominent NGOs such as Amnesty International, Greenpeace India and the Ford Foundation, which have also been critical of the ruling dispensation at the Centre, have run into problems. Under these circumstances, it is incumbent upon the Union government to make it clear that the FCRA law, meant to regulate foreign funding of NGOs, is not being used to shrink the space for certain civil society organisations.

M. Jeyaram,

Sholavandan, Tamil Nadu

The Government is sure to have sound reasons for its decision (Page 1, “‘Audit irregularities’ led to FCRA denial, says official”, December 29). If there are “adverse inputs” and “allegations of conversions”, we must be patient enough to wait for a full investigation rather than be quick to attack the Government and make unsavoury remarks.

R. Seshadri,

Mumbai

‘Perfume of corruption’

A businessman in Kanpur was “found” to have stashed away crores during raids by the I-T Department. This has led to a spat between the ruling BJP and the Samajwadi Party over his political connections. But could the financial illegalities by the businessman have occurred without the knowledge of the ruling dispensation in the State and the Centre? If yes, it is a case of gross administrative failure and also incompetence. Also, the existence even now of black money is testimony to the abject failure of the demonetisation process, the main reason for its undertaking being the elimination of unaccounted wealth.

K.R. Jayaprakash Rao,

Mysuru