UPSC Prelims Practice Questions — House Panel on FCRA Bill to meet on September 18

Q1. In Indian parliamentary practice, a Joint Committee on a Bill — such as the one now examining the Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Amendment Bill, 2026 — is best described as which one of the following?

  • A. A standing committee named in the Rules of Procedure and reconstituted every year from members of both Houses
  • B. One of the 24 department-related standing committees to which every Bill stands referred upon introduction
  • C. An ad hoc committee set up by a motion of one House concurred in by the other, which ceases to exist once it reports
  • D. A committee of the Lok Sabha alone, appointed by the Speaker to scrutinise Bills having financial implications

Q2. Of the 31 members of the joint committee constituted to examine the Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Amendment Bill, 2026, the larger House-wise bloc of 21 members is to be nominated by which one of the following?

  • A. C P Radhakrishnan, Chairman of the Rajya Sabha
  • B. Om Birla, Speaker of the Lok Sabha
  • C. Nityanand Rai, the Minister who moved the referral motion
  • D. Sanjay Jaiswal, the presiding member of the committee

Q3. Under the FCRA framework as it now stands, every recipient's foreign contribution must first be received in one single designated account. That account must be opened in which one of the following?

  • A. The New Delhi Main Branch of the State Bank of India
  • B. Any branch of the State Bank of India anywhere in India, without exception
  • C. The Central Office of the Reserve Bank of India, Mumbai, in all cases
  • D. Any scheduled bank branch designated by the State Government concerned

Q4. An association seeking fresh registration under the FCRA must ordinarily satisfy a minimum period of existence and a minimum amount already spent on its chosen activities. What are these two thresholds?

  • A. Three years of existence and at least Rs 10 lakh spent
  • B. Five years of existence and at least Rs 15 lakh spent
  • C. Five years of existence and at least Rs 10 lakh spent
  • D. Three years of existence and at least Rs 15 lakh spent

Q5. Consider the following, in relation to the Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Amendment Bill, 2026: 1. It provides for a Designated Authority in which the foreign contribution and assets of an organisation vest when its certificate is cancelled, surrendered, denied renewal, or allowed to lapse. 2. It reduces the maximum term of imprisonment for a violation of the Act from five years to one year. 3. It requires that where an asset so vested is a place of worship, its religious character be maintained. 4. It shifts the administration of the parent Act from the Ministry of Home Affairs to the Ministry of Corporate Affairs. Which of the above is/are correctly identified?

  1. It provides for a Designated Authority in which the foreign contribution and assets of an organisation vest when its certificate is cancelled, surrendered, denied renewal, or allowed to lapse.
  2. It reduces the maximum term of imprisonment for a violation of the Act from five years to one year.
  3. It requires that where an asset so vested is a place of worship, its religious character be maintained.
  4. It shifts the administration of the parent Act from the Ministry of Home Affairs to the Ministry of Corporate Affairs.
  • A. 1 and 3 only
  • B. 2 and 4 only
  • C. 1, 2 and 3 only
  • D. 1, 2, 3 and 4

Q6. Under the Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Amendment Bill, 2026, where the Designated Authority disposes of a vested asset by sale, the sale proceeds are to be credited to which one of the following?

  • A. The Contingency Fund of India, operated on behalf of the President
  • B. The Consolidated Fund of India
  • C. The Public Account of India, under the Department of Economic Affairs
  • D. The National Foundation for Communal Harmony, an autonomous body of the MHA

Q7. The joint committee route now being used for the FCRA Amendment Bill follows the precedent of the Waqf (Amendment) Bill, 2024, which was examined by a 31-member joint committee. Who presided over that earlier committee?

  • A. Bhartruhari Mahtab
  • B. Baijayant Panda
  • C. Sanjay Jaiswal
  • D. Jagdambika Pal

Q8. While finalising its report, the joint committee on the Waqf (Amendment) Bill, 2024 adopted a set of amendments to the Bill, every one of them moved by members of the ruling alliance, and turned down those moved by Opposition members. How many amendments did the committee adopt?

  • A. 14
  • B. 21
  • C. 31
  • D. 44

Q9. The joint committee must report on the Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Amendment Bill, 2026 by the last day of the first week of the Winter Session, 2026. The Bill, once enacted, would be operationalised by which one of the following?

  • A. The Ministry of External Affairs
  • B. The Ministry of Corporate Affairs
  • C. The Ministry of Home Affairs
  • D. The Department of Revenue, Ministry of Finance

Q10. Consider the following statements regarding the parliamentary handling of the Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Amendment Bill, 2026: 1. The Bill was introduced in the Lok Sabha on 25 March 2026, several months before the motion referring it to a joint committee was adopted on 12 August 2026. 2. The session in which that referral motion was adopted ran from 20 July 2026 to 13 August 2026 and provided 19 sittings. 3. The committee has been directed to present its report to the Rajya Sabha by the last day of the first week of the Winter Session, 2026. Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

  1. The Bill was introduced in the Lok Sabha on 25 March 2026, several months before the motion referring it to a joint committee was adopted on 12 August 2026.
  2. The session in which that referral motion was adopted ran from 20 July 2026 to 13 August 2026 and provided 19 sittings.
  3. The committee has been directed to present its report to the Rajya Sabha by the last day of the first week of the Winter Session, 2026.
  • A. 1 and 2 only
  • B. 1 and 3 only
  • C. 2 and 3 only
  • D. 1, 2 and 3

Q11. In defending the new asset-management framework against the charge that it arms the executive against civil society, the government has pointed to the shrinking base of FCRA-compliant entities. Roughly how many FCRA registrations stood active as on 15 July 2026?

  • A. About 15,200
  • B. About 14,450
  • C. About 20,700
  • D. About 22,500

Q12. Donations and gifts received by Indian associations from foreign sources are regulated under one statute, while cross-border foreign exchange dealings generally are governed by a separate statute of 1999. The administration of the latter statute rests with which one of the following?

  • A. The Ministry of Home Affairs, through its Foreigners Division
  • B. The Securities and Exchange Board of India
  • C. The Directorate of Enforcement, Ministry of Finance
  • D. The Reserve Bank of India