SHILLONG, NOV 2: Flagging the proposed provision to surrender assets funded by foreign contribution, the Presbyterian Church of India on Monday told the Joint Parliamentary Committee that church lands in Meghalaya cannot be taken over without following Autonomous District Council laws.
Rev Socratis Diengngan, Chairman, FCRA Committee, PCI, said a three-member team of the church appeared before the JPC in Shillong and raised three key issues – delay in registration and renewal, difficulty in compliance, and asset surrender.
“From our side we suggested an easier process without difficulties. We spoke about delays in getting registration certificate and renewal under FCRA. Other stakeholders also raised the same problem,” Diengngan told reporters after the meeting.
On assets, he said, “We get assets little or fully through donations collected through the organisation. We said we cannot hand over our assets. More so in Meghalaya which falls under the Autonomous District Council. The Government of India or the state cannot snatch our land without following the law and rules of the Autonomous District Council.”
Terming the 2026 Amendment Rules as more stringent than the Bill itself, Diengngan said implementation, if any, must be prospective and not retrospective.
“We have requested the JPC to reconsider the notified Rules and to repeal the Amendment Bill 2026 and reconsider the Amendment Rules 2026,” he said.
