Vatican News reported on Saturday that the Indian government reinstated the FCRA license for the Missionaries of Charity on January 7, allowing the group to receive and use foreign funds once again.
On Christmas Day, the Indian Ministry of the Interior had declared the Missionaries ineligible for foreign donations, without providing a full explanation for the reason.
Sunita Kumar, spokesperson for the Missionaries of Charity in Calcutta, told the New York Times on December 28 that she was convinced the issue could be resolved. She indicated that funding for the missionaries' work would not be immediately affected due to local support.
A few days later, however, the missionaries began to ration their distribution of food and other items to the poor, causing dismay and concern among the poor people assisted by the missionaries.
The Indian government's reversal is a relief.
"We did not expect our registration to be canceled, but it happened," said Ms. Kumar to UCA News after the January 7 announcement.
"We are happy that the reinstatement of our license happened without much delay."
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Licenses granted to NGOs under India's 1976 Foreign Contribution Regulation Act are subject to a five-year validity period. Recently, the Indian government has tightened its control over foreign funding for other non-profit organizations, such as Amnesty International.
These legal issues in India arise against a backdrop of political, social, and religious tensions, as well as problems of anti-Christian religious extremism in many areas.
Foreign donations to the Missionaries of Charity amounted to more than 13 million dollars for the financial year ending in March 2021, according to documents filed by the organization. The organization does not publicly disclose its total income, according to the New York Times.
Father Dominic Gomes, vicar general of the Archdiocese of Calcutta, had called the initial announcement a "cruel Christmas gift for the poorest of the poor."
He said there are 22,000 people directly dependent on and benefiting from the Missionaries of Charity centers in India, reports UCA News. The sisters and brothers of the Missionaries of Charity "strive to uplift thousands of people and are often the only friends of lepers and outcasts of society whom no one dares to approach."
Saint Teresa of Calcutta founded the Missionaries of Charity in 1950, under the auspices of the Archdiocese of Calcutta. The government granted the missionaries a home to serve the poor of Calcutta in 1952. The organization now has hundreds of houses worldwide and its members include religious sisters and brothers and priests, as well as a lay organization.
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