Centre cancels FCRA licence of Sonam Wangchuk's NGO amid Leh protest

The Home Ministry alleged account discrepancies, including a fund transfer from Sweden against "national interest", as the reason for cancellation

The Centre on Thursday revoked the Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Act (FCRA) licence of the Students' Educational and Cultural Movement of Ladakh (SECMOL), the organisation founded by climate activist Sonam Wangchuk, news agency PTI reported on Thursday.

 

The Home Ministry said the decision was taken after detecting multiple discrepancies in SECMOL’s accounts, including a fund transfer from Sweden which was deemed against the “national interest”.

 

This development comes a day after violent clashes in Leh between protesters demanding statehood for Ladakh and security forces left four people dead. Authorities attributed the unrest to Wangchuk’s involvement in the movement; the activist had been on a hunger strike demanding statehood for the Union Territory.

 

 

Responding to the development, Wangchuk told PTI that he was only a donor to SECMOL, besides teaching there. He also added that he in unaware of the FCRA licence cancellation. 

Allegations against Secmol

 

The ministry cited multiple alleged discrepancies in Secmol’s accounts. These include a foreign contribution of around ₹493,205 from Sweden intended to fund workshops on migration, climate change, global warming, food security and sovereignty, and organic farming. The ministry said the funds "cannot be accepted for study on sovereignty of the nation as it is against ‘national interests’".

 

Other irregularities include:

A ₹350,000 deposit by Wangchuk into Secmol’s FCRA account during 2021-22, which the ministry said violated Section 17 of the FCRA. Secmol had explained that the amount came from the sale of an old bus purchased in 2015 using FCRA funds, which should be returned to the FCRA account as per guidelines.

 

The ministry stated that it seems the sum was received in cash, breaching Section 17 of the Act, and was not adequately disclosed in Secmol’s response. It added: "An amount of ₹335,000 has been reported by the association as a foreign contribution from Sonam Wangchuk. However, this transaction does not appear in the FCRA account, violating Section 18 of the Act."

 

The ministry also pointed out a ₹54,600 transfer of local funds into the FCRA account, which Secmol claimed was an error. The ministry added that the transfer of these funds into the FCRA account was a violation of Section 17 of the Act.

 

Wangchuk’s Himalayan Institute of Alternatives Ladakh (HIAL) is also being probed by the CBI for alleged violations of FCRA rules.