Oxfam India: I-T survey team took all data by cloning server, mobile phones

After the Income Tax Department conducted a ‘survey’ at its Delhi office, global NGO Oxfam India said it is compliant with Indian laws and has filed all its statutory compliances, including income tax and Foreign Contribution Regulation Act (FCRA) returns, in a timely manner since its inception.

In a statement on Friday (September 9), Oxfam India said, “The Income Tax (IT) department officials conducted an Income Tax ‘survey’ at the Oxfam India Delhi office from the 7th September 2022 noon to early hours of 9th September.”

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“During these 35 plus hours of non-stop survey, the Oxfam India team members were not allowed to leave the premises; the internet was shut down and all the mobile phones were confiscated,” it added.

‘No reason given’

Oxfam said it is an organisation that has been “law-abiding and community-centric”.

According to the global non-profit organisation, the I-T survey team “took away hundreds of pages of data pertaining to finances and programmes of Oxfam India”.

“They also took all the data by cloning the Oxfam India server and the private mobile phones of the Senior leadership team and the Finance lead. While the team conducting the survey was polite and professional; the process of a survey with such sweeping powers and broad ambit resulted in disappointing Oxfam India.

“This Income Tax survey was undertaken without giving a reason. Oxfam India has co-operated with the Income Tax department during this survey and is committed to doing so in the future. In January 2022 we also had a detailed week-long audit of the FCRA accounts by the auditors appointed by the FCRA division,” the NGO said.

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Further, it added, “In times of growing inequality and greater need for action on poverty eradication, Oxfam India has been and will continue to work in public interest. We are guided by the principle of creating lasting solutions to address the injustice of poverty, to leave no one behind, and to end discrimination and create a free and just society. Oxfam India believes this is our constitutional duty as an organisation, irrespective of obstacles and hurdles in the path.

“The past eight months have been distressing for Oxfam India. In December 2021, the renewal of FCRA licence was denied by the Ministry of Home Affairs. Despite this, Oxfam India was conducting one of the largest civil society responses to the Covid crisis across 16 states in India.”

The IT survey and MHA’s (Ministry of Home Affairs) refusal to renew Oxfam India’s FCRA registration will not reduce our commitment to serve the vulnerable communities in the country and uphold values enshrined in the Indian Constitution, it said.

CPR statement

Meanwhile, think tank Centre for Policy Research (CPR) which was also surveyed by the I-T department, said it extended full co-operation and will continue to do so in the future.

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“The Income Tax Department visited our office to undertake a survey of CPR on 7th and 8th September 2022. We have extended full cooperation to the department during the survey, and will continue to do so in the future,” CPR said in a statement on Friday.

“We hold ourselves to the highest standards of compliance and are confident that we have done nothing wrong. We are committed to working with the authorities to address any questions they might have. We remain committed to our mission to provide rigorous research to policy making in India,” it added.

The I-T surveys were conducted as part of an FCRA probe.