I-T raids on Delhi-based think-tank Centre of Policy Research over funding: Report

The Income Tax Department has conducted raids at the Delhi-based Centre for Policy Research (CPR), which is counted among the top think-tanks of the country, according to a media report.

While an official statement was awaited from the taxation body, NDTV quoted a source as saying that the raid is “connected to” similar action taken in Gujarat, Maharashtra and Haryana “over funding of more than 20 registered but non-recognised political parties”.

A team of more than 10 officers is inside the CPR office and specifically inspecting its account books, sources said. The team reached around noon and the “survey is going on”.

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CPR, a ‘not-for-profit’ society

Established in 1973, CPR describes itself as “a non-partisan, independent institution dedicated to conducting research that contributes to high quality scholarship, better policies, and a more robust public discourse about the issues that impact life in India”.

On its website it states that it is recognised as a “not-for-profit society” by the Government of India, and contributions to it are “tax exempt”. “CPR receives grants from a variety of domestic and international sources, including foundations, corporate philanthropy, governments, and multilateral agencies,” the website says, adding that “a full accounting of annual finances and grants” is available on the website.

Headed by Meenakshi Gopinath

Once headed by academician Pratap Bhanu Mehta, a prominent critic of the BJP government, the CPR governing board is at present chaired by Meenakshi Gopinath, a political scientist who taught at Jawaharlal Nehru University and was principal of Lady Shri Ram College in New Delhi.

Also read: How to check your Income Tax refund status online

CPR’s chief executive and president is Yamini Aiyar, a leading policy researcher who is also the daughter of Congress leader and former Union minister Mani Shankar Aiyar. Members of the board include former foreign secretary Shyam Saran and IIM professor Rama Bijapurkar.