- On November 4, Indian government cancelled Greenpeace India Society’s registration.
- Society’s registration was cancelled for allegedly violating various rules of Tamil Nadu Societies Registration Act.
- Greenpeace India will challenge the order in court and is confident of overcoming it.
On November 4, the Indian government cancelled Greenpeace India Society’s registration. The Society was registered in the southern state of Tamil Nadu in India.
“This is an extension of the deep intolerance for differing viewpoints that sections of this government seem to harbor,” Vinuta Gopal, Interim Executive Director of Greenpeace India, said in a statement.
According to the notice issued by the Tamil Nadu Registrar of Societies, Greenpeace India society’s registration was cancelled for “fraudulently” conducting their business by falsifying balance sheets, and other violations of the Tamil Nadu Societies Registration Act of 1975.
“The Registrar has passed this order without granting Greenpeace a hearing, and without complying with the Madras High Court order to address each of our points and queries,” Gopal said in the statement. “This is a blatant attempt to circumvent the legal process and shows no respect for the law.
For over a year, the government of India and Greenpeace India have been at loggerheads. In September, for example, India’s Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) issued an order cancelling Greenpeace India’s FCRA (Foreign Contribution Regulation Act) registration, which allows the NGO to receive foreign donations.
The Indian government also blocked several Greenpeace India bank accounts and froze their funding earlier this year, and barred Priya Pillai, a Greenpeace India activist, from boarding a flight to the UK.
Greenpeace India plans to challenge the order in court. “We are confident that we are on strong legal ground. We have faith in the legal process and are confident of overcoming this order,” Gopal said.
