US regulates flow of foreign funds,FCRA Bill an internal matter: India

India on Friday rejected criticism by US Congressman Riley Moore over the proposed Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Amendment Bill, 2026, saying legislative matters are India's internal affairs and pointing out that several countries, including the United States, have laws regulating foreign funding. The remarks came days after Riley Moore, a Republican representative from West Virginia, alleged that the proposed amendments amounted to a "clear attack against Christians" and warned they could adversely affect India-US bilateral relations.MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said India has a well-established democratic process for framing legislation and that domestic laws should be viewed in their proper context.He added that countries across the world, including the US, regulate foreign contributions to organisations through their own legal frameworks.

#WATCH | Delhi: Responding to comments by a US lawmaker on the proposed Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Act (FCRA) Amendment Bill, MEA Spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal says, "We have seen the comments on FCRA. Legislative matters concerning India are our internal affairs on which… pic.twitter.com/l3i52nrEuS

— ANI (@ANI) August 7, 2026

Moore, in a statement issued on August 4, had claimed that the proposed amendments could enable the Indian government to take control of churches and religious charities if their Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Act (FCRA) registration was cancelled or not renewed. He argued that such provisions would disproportionately affect Christian organisations and urged the Indian government to reconsider the proposed legislation.The FCRA is aimed at ensuring that foreign funding does not adversely affect the country's sovereignty, integrity, security, public interest or democratic institutions.
Earlier, Meghalaya chief minister Conrad Sangma and Christian organisations raised concerns over the proposed amendments, even as government officials said the revisions are aimed at strengthening oversight of foreign funding and are not intended to target any religious community. Mizoram Chief Minister Lalduhoma said Union Home Minister Amit Shah had assured that the proposed Bill would not have retrospective effect.