Parliament Monsoon Session: FCRA Amendment Bill, Shiksha Adhishthan Bill among 7 legislations likely to be tabled

The Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Amendment Bill, 2026, introduced in the Lok Sabha on March 25, seeks to amend the Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Act, 2010, with the stated objective of enhancing transparency and accountability of foreign contributions in the country.

The Bill provides for the cessation of the FCRA certificate of an organisation upon expiry, non-renewal or refusal of renewal by the government. The amendments also establish a designated authority for "a comprehensive framework for vesting, supervision, management and disposal of foreign contribution and assets, including provisional and permanent vesting."

The Bill has become a major issue of contention ahead of the Keralam Assembly elections, as the state houses a major Christian population and several NGOs and organisations drawing funds under the FCRA.

Viksit Bharat Shiksha Adhishthan Bill, formerly the Higher Education Commission of India (HECI) Bill, aims to replace the University Grants Commission (UGC), the All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE), and the National Council for Teacher Education (NCTE).

The Bill also brings Institutes of National Importance (INIs) under the regulatory framework for the first time, whereas until now they functioned largely outside such oversight.

The proposed legislation faced criticism due to its Section 15(3)(g), which provides that the proposed higher education commission "shall be bound" by policy directions issued by the Central government and that in the event of any disagreement, "the Government's decision shall be final". However, Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan said the provision does not represent a shift in the existing legal framework.

The Bill was sent to a Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) comprising of 21 members of the Lok Sabha and 10 from the Rajya Sabha.

The Bill will be brought in an environment where Dharmendra Pradhan has faced significant criticism over the NEET-UG paper leak.

Apart from these, the new Bills listed for introduction in the House include the Income-tax (Amendment) Bill, 2026, to replace an Ordinance. The Bill, as per the Lok Sabha Secretariat, seeks to deepen India's sovereign debt market, attract stable global capital inflows, and enhance liquidity in view of the prevailing global macroeconomic environment, marked by significant volatility arising from geopolitical uncertainties, sharp increases in crude oil prices, and disruptions in global supply chains.

The Supreme Court (Number of Judges) Amendment Bill, 2026. The government, with an ordinance, has increased the number of Judges of the Supreme Court from 33 to 37.

The Centre is likely to bring in the Registration of Births and Deaths (Amendment) Bill, 2026, to further amend section 13(3) of the Act to make provisions of delayed registration more stringent.

The Prevention of Insults to National Honour (Amendment) Bill, 2026, is expected to be moved in the House to amend the 1971 Act.

The Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises Development (Amendment) Bill, 2026 to align the 2006 Act with the changing MSME landscape, to enhance the Ease of Doing Business and to bring trust-based regulations in the MSME ecosystem.

The Bill aims to strengthen the mechanism for addressing delayed payments and provide for enforcement of arbitral awards for the MSEs, and to introduce flexibility and create enabling provisions for States to decide the composition of the Micro and Small Enterprises Facilitation Council (MSEFC), thereby forming more MSEFCs.

The Monsoon Session of the Parliament will begin on July 20 and will go on till August 13.

The Congress and the opposition parties will flag the Ayodhya Ram Temple donation embezzlement case, NEET-UG and other paper leaks, the E20 fuel and India's foreign policy as issues in Parliament. (ANI)