In the wake of another embarrassing goof up by the crucial foreigners division of the Union Home Ministry, the MHA has suspended two under secretaries and one section officer for negligence in handling the request for FCRA renewal by televangelist Zakir Naik's NGOs—Islamic research Foundation and Islamic Research Foundation Educational Trust .
Despite the MHA and intelligence agencies scrutinising Naik's activities and the foreign funding to his NGOs, the foreigners division gave a five-year extension to Naik's NGOs for receiving foreign aid for its activities in the country.
Foreigners division oversees Foreign Contribution Regulation Act (FCRA) which monitors NGOs in India that receive foreign funding for its activities.
Swinging into action to curtail the damage done, the MHA has now cancelled this extension till the inquiry is under way. The FCRA licences to Naik's NGOs had expired on December 31.2015.
"The action against two under secretaries and one section officer was due to their negligence in clearing the renewal while a case is still pending. We had made the process of FCRA renewal online," Minister of State Kiren Rijiju said .
The fresh goof up has come only four months after another official of the foreigners division was arrested by the CBI. Anand Joshi was arrested in May after he was accused of stealing a file related to Teesta Setalvad's Sabrang Trust and arbitrarily issuing notices to 60 to 70 NGOs in the country.
Naik has been under scanner by various security agencies for allegedly brainwashing youth to join ISIS.
