The Foreign Exchange Management Act, 1999 (FEMA) was violated by M/s Amnesty India International Pvt. Ltd. (AIIPL) and its CEO Shri Aakar Patel, according to the Adjudicating Authority of the Directorate of Enforcement (ED), who assessed fines of Rs. 51.72 crore and Rs. 10 crores, respectively.
Based on the information that Amnesty International, the UK had been sending a significant amount of foreign contributions through its Indian entities (non-FCRA companies) to circumvent the Foreign Contribution Regulation Act (FCRA) and expand its NGO activities in India, despite the Ministry of Home Affairs’ refusal to grant Amnesty International India Foundation Trust (AIIFT) and other trusts under the FCRA prior registration or permission, the ED had opened an investigation under the FEMA. from India.
According to the Shaw Cause Notice (SCN) issued by ED, remittance received by AIIPL between November 2013 and June 2018 and claimed as payment for business/management consulting and public relations services for the export of services to a foreign beneficiary was just money borrowed from an overseas remitter, in violation of FEMA rules.
The Adjudicating Authority of ED has determined that AIIPL is an umbrella entity under M/s. Amnesty International Ltd., UK, was established for social activities in India after receiving a thorough response from AIIPL and using the concept of natural justice. However, AIIPL has engaged in several activities that are unrelated to their claimed commercial activity, and they have used a circumvention strategy to channel foreign monies under the pretext of commercial operations to avoid FCRA inspection.
In the lack of supporting documentation, all claims and arguments made by AIIPL about the alleged reimbursement for the export of services to Amnesty International have been rejected. Therefore, it is determined that the money that entered AIIPL’s possession through inward remittances to the tune of Rs 51,72,78,111.87 is nothing more than the money that Amnesty International lent to AIIPL to ensure its goals in the Indian subcontinent, which violates Regulation 3 of the Foreign Exchange Management (borrowing and lending in Foreign Exchange) Regulations, 2000. As a result, under the terms of FEMA, fines of Rs. 51.72 crores have been levied against AIIPL and Rs. 10 crores have been levied against Shri Aakar Patel.
