ED Searches Beneficiaries Of George Soros' OSF, And Linked Entities In FEMA Case

The Enforcement Directorate on Tuesday conducted searches against some alleged beneficiaries of US billionaire George Soros' Open Society Foundations (OSF) alongside some linked entities in Bengaluru.

According to PTI, the searches came as part of investigation of a foreign exchange "violation" probe against them under the Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA)..

It has been reported that the case pertains to alleged foreign direct investment (FDI) being sourced by OSF and the utilisation of these funds by certain beneficiaries in alleged contravention of FEMA guidelines. However, the official response from OSF is still awaited.

OSF calls itself one of the world's largest private funders of groups supporting human rights, justice and accountable government. Back in 2021, OSF reportedly had an total expenditure for India worth USD 4,06,000, as per official data.

The OSF began working in India in 1999, offering scholarships and fellowships to students to pursue studies and research at Indian institutes.

"In 2014, we launched an India-specific grant-making programme, supporting local organisations that work in three areas: extending access to medicine; promoting justice system reforms; and strengthening and establishing rights, public services, and community living for people with psychosocial disabilities," the OSF said earlier.

Amnesty International, HRW Employees Searched As Well

Besides OSF beneficiaries, the central probe agency also searched former employees of Amnesty International and the current employees of Human Rights Watch, or HRW as both the organizations reportedly received funds from the OSF in the past.

In 2022 Amnesty's India chief, Aakar Patel was fined Rs 10 crore (and the NGO itself Rs 51.72 crore) for contravening the foreign exchange law, or the Foreign Contribution Regulation Act.' Amnesty's India operations shut down in December 2020, after the government froze its bank accounts alleging illegal foreign funding) were searched, as were those of current .

whose India operations shut down in December 2020, after the government froze its bank accounts alleging illegal foreign funding) were searched, as were those of current .

Who is George Soros?

George Soros is a Hungarian-American philanthropist and businessman. He was born in Hungary in 1930 and lived through the Nazi occupation of 1944–1945, according to details available on his website. He is famously known in the UK as the man who broke the Bank of England by betting against the British pound. A report by Forbes stated that Soros shorted the British pound in 1992 and reportedly made a profit of $1 billion.

According to his website, he founded the Open Society Foundations which is a network of foundations, partners, and projects in more than 100 countries. "He has given away more than $32 billion of his personal fortune to fund the Open Society Foundations’ work around the world," the website said.

Among those that the foundation supported are individuals and organizations across the globe fighting for freedom of expression, accountable government, and societies that promote justice and equality, the website said. "The foundations have also provided school and university fees for thousands of promising students who would otherwise have been excluded from opportunities because of their identity or where they live," it added.

BJP's George Soros Attacks

The BJP in 2024 launched a scathing attack on organizations linked to, or funded, by George Soros for allegedly acting against India's interests.

According to the ruling party, all the foundations that get OSF's funding, including the Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project, or OCCRP, produce "anti-India" reports and narratives which are further amplified by the the Congress to criticise the union government and "defame" the country.

The political slugfest further intensified after the BJP and Congress chiefs, JP Nadda and Mallikarjun Kharge, faced off over accusations over 'links' between Sonia Gandhi and the Soros-funded Forum of the Democratic Leaders in Asia Pacific Foundation as Gandhi is the co-President of the forum.

The allegations came a week after the BJP called Rahul Gandhi a "traitor" and said Mr Soros, "some American agencies" (which also funded the OCCRP) and he were trying to destabilise India.