New Delhi: The Centre has cancelled the FCRA licence of Greenpeace India, the NGO claimed in a statement that was confirmed by the home ministry. Loss of FCRA licence means the NGO will not be able to accept foreign donations.

“The Greenpeace legal team has learnt that the Ministry of Home Affairs has notified the Delhi high court that Greenpeace’s FCRA registration has been cancelled. This news comes just a day before a scheduled hearing at the Delhi high court that was examining the merits of MHA’s arbitrary action,” the NGO’s statement said.

Interim co-executive director of Greenpeace India, Vinuta Gopal, in a statement said that Greenpeace will continue its campaigning undeterred, and “is in fact launching a new creative campaign” to highlight the nationwide crackdown on civil liberties.

“The cancelling of our FCRA registration is the government’s latest move in a relentless onslaught against the community’s right to dissent. It is yet another attempt to silence campaigns for a more sustainable future and transparency in public processes. Cutting access to our foreign funding may be a desperate attempt to get us to cease our work, but the MHA probably didn’t count on our having an amazing network of volunteers and supporters who have helped us continue our work despite the government crackdown. Since the majority of our funding comes from Indian citizens, most of our work can indeed continue.

We are responding to this latest melodrama by launching a new creative online campaign and are confident that people will show they are ready to fight back in style, and send a clear message to those in power: you just can’t muzzle dissent in a democracy,” Gopal said.

MHA had frozen bank accounts of Greenpeace besides issuing it a show-cause notice on April 9.

(Agencies)