On Tuesday, Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma demanded that Amnesty International be banned from working in India, accusing the organisation of attempting to “defame Prime Minister Narendra Modi.”
Amnesty International, one of the world’s most well-known human rights organisations, has a “long history of plotting conspiracies against India’s democratic fabric and its leadership,” according to the Chief Minister.
“I strongly denounce this conspiracy and urge a prohibition on the operations of organisations hell-bent on defaming and damaging our country,” he said.
“We all know Amnesty International’s role in encouraging left-wing terrorism in India and defaming India and Prime Minister Modi… it’s a global conspiracy… Their main goal is to instil discontent in various segments of Indian society “Mr. Sarma explained.
The Indian government and Amnesty International have clashed several times in the last year over claims of unlawful foreign funds and the fact that it never registered under the Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Act.
Amnesty International has stated that it complies with all Indian and international rules that must be followed in order to accept money.
As part of a money laundering investigation, the Enforcement Directorate attached movable properties worth Rs 17.66 crore in February. After several raids on its India offices and the freezing of bank accounts in September of last year, the company was forced to lay off dozens of employees.
“The entire suspension of Amnesty International India’s bank accounts by the government of India… brings all activity to a grinding halt,” Amnesty stated in a statement.
“This is the latest in India’s ongoing witch-hunt against human rights organisations based on false and motivated claims,” the statement continued.
“The two-year-long crackdown on Amnesty International India, including the entire freezing of bank accounts, is not an accident. Our unwavering efforts for government transparency have resulted in persistent harassment by government authorities, particularly the Enforcement Directorate. This current attack is equivalent to freezing dissent for a movement that has done nothing except raise its voices against injustice “Amnesty International stated.
All of Amnesty’s actions have been tied to reports critical of the Modi government, including those that raised concerns about human rights breaches during the February riots in Delhi and in Jammu and Kashmir following the repeal of Article 370.
