Govt says Missionaries of Charity asked SBI to freeze bank accounts

The MHA in a statement said that it has "not frozen any account of Missionaries of Charity."

The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) has said it did not freeze the bank accounts of Missionaries of Charity (MoC). The State Bank of India (SBI) has informed the central government that Missionaries of Charity itself sent a request to the country's largest lender to freeze its accounts.The MHA in a statement said that it has "not frozen any account of Missionaries of Charity." However, the Home Ministry has refused the renewal of their Foreign Contribution Regulation Act (FCRA) registration citing "adverse inputs".MAMATA BANERJEE'S ALLEGATIONSThe MHA's statement came hours after West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee took to Twitter to highlight the issue. Banerjee in a tweet on Monday said, "Shocked to hear that on Christmas, Union Ministry FROZE ALL BANK ACCOUNTS of Mother Teresa’s Missionaries of Charity in India! Their 22,000 patients & employees have been left without food & medicine. While the law is paramount, humanitarian efforts must not be compromised."MHA STATEMENTThe MHA responded to Mamata Banerjee with a statement that read, "The renewal application under Foreign Contribution Regulation Act (FCRA) for the renewal of FCRA registration of Missionaries of Charity was refused on 25 Dec 2021 for not meeting the eligibility conditions under FCRA 2010 and Foreign Contribution Regulation Rules (FCRR) 2011. No request/revision application has been received from Missionaries of Charity for review of this refusal of renewal.""However, while considering the MoC's renewal application, some adverse inputs were noticed. In consideration of these inputs on record, the renewal application of MoC was not approved. The FCRA registration of MoC was valid up to 31st December 2021. MHA didn't freeze any accounts of MoC. State Bank of India has informed that MoC itself sent a request to SBI to freeze its accounts," the statement goes on to add.FCRA REGULATIONSMissionaries of Charity (MoC) was registered under FCRA vide Registration No 147120001 and its registration was valid up to October 31, 2021. The validity was subsequently extended up to December 31, 2021, along with other FCRA Associations whose renewal applications were pending renewal.Reacting to the developments, Vicar General, Archdiocese of Calcutta, Fr. Dominic Gomes said in a statement, "Government agencies have given a cruel Christmas gift to the poorest of the poor. Besides over 22000 direct dependants and beneficiaries at their centres across the country, MC Sisters and Brothers reach out to uplift thousands and are often the only friends of the lepers and social outcast no one will even venture near."

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