MADURAI: Religious organisations engaged in converting people of one religious faith to another shall be denied Foreign Contribution Regulation Act (FCRA) registration, said Madras high court, adding those that would not affect the nation’s secular fabric and social amity were entitled to obtain registration.Rejecting an FCRA plea of a Kodaikanal-based trust — Kanzeon Public Charitable Trust founded in 2021 — a division bench of Justice G R Swaminathan and Justice M D Sumathi said an ordained Christian priest, Rev Fr Ama Samy S J, was the moving spirit behind it, and said: “One cannot forget the fact that Christianity is a messianic religion. Their theological and religious mission is to bring everyone within the fold of Jesus Christ. There is a saying ‘a leopard will not change its spots’. Unlike Hinduism which is inclusive, the Abrahamic religions are inherently exclusive. The devout Jews, Christians and Muslims believe that theirs is the one true and complete revelation because that is what their Holy books say of themselves.”If foreign funds are freely allowed inside to facilitate conversion activities, the sovereignty of the nation would be imperilled, the judges said. “We specifically highlight the issue of conversion because radical Christian institutions are notorious for indulging in such activities. We hasten to clarify that we do not accuse the appellant of having any such agenda. Section 12(4)(a)(ii) specifically refers to conversion from one religious faith to another. This provision applies to all religious organisations. A fundamentalist Hindu organisation engaged in ‘Ghar Wapsi’ cannot be registered under FCRA. The statutory regime which was put in place during UPA rule (2010) is intended to subserve secular objects,” the judges said.It is necessary to make a clear distinction between a religious organisation and a cultural or educational entity, said the judges adding: “An organisation primarily engaged in the systematic teaching of Vedanta, the Bhagavad Gita, the Upanishads, Yoga and allied Indian Knowledge Systems through structured classes, residential courses, publications, research and preservation of manuscripts cannot be classified as religious institutions. Indian Knowledge Systems (IKS) would fall under the category of education or culture.”The trust claims to subscribe to Zen Buddhist philosophy. But on the own showing of the appellant, they are a religious organisation, concluded the bench, adding: “The reason set out in the impugned order is eminently sustainable. The authority rightly states that Zen Buddhism is a variant of Mahayana Buddhist School. Every Buddhist school will come under the broad umbrella of Buddhism. Zen can be no exception. Since the appellant’s application did not correctly identify its nature as religious, the application was rightly negatived.”“When the statute envisages a frank disclosure of all the details, any misrepresentation would entail rejection of the application itself. Though the applicant is engaged in religious programmes, they wrongly projected themselves as non-religious. That is why, the authorities had to say ‘Illa Samy’ (No Sir) to Rev Fr Ama Samy (whose name literally translates as ‘Yes’),” the judges said.
