NEW DELHI: India is exploiting recommendations by a global money-laundering watchdog as a “draconian” tool to shutter civil society groups and suppress activists and critics, Amnesty International said Wednesday.
Government critics within civil society organizations and the media have long complained of harassment in the world’s biggest democracy under Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Hindu-nationalist administration, a charge it strenuously denies.
Amnesty said the recommendations of the Paris-based Financial Action Task Force (FATF) were being abused to bring in “draconian laws to stifle the non-profit sector” and block organizations from funding.
The 39-nation FATF, of which India has been a member since 2010, is mandated to tackle global money laundering and terrorist financing.
Critics say Modi’s government has sought to pressure rights groups by heavily scrutinizing their finances and clamping down on foreign funding.
“Under the guise of combatting terrorism, the Indian government has leveraged the Financial Action Task Force’s recommendations to tighten its arsenal of financial and counter-terrorism laws which are routinely misused to target and silence critics,” Amnesty International India chair Aakar Patel said in a statement.
In the last 10 years, India has canceled the licenses of more than 20,600 non-governmental organizations, with nearly 6,000 of these taking place since 2022, the report said.
In 2020, Amnesty International had to suspend its Indian operations after its bank accounts were frozen.
The Indian government defended its move, accusing Amnesty of “illegal practices” involving the transfer of “large amounts of money” from Amnesty UK to India.
Journalists critical of the government also complain of increased harassment, both on social media — where Modi’s ruling party has a powerful presence — and in the real world.
![]()
India using anti-money laundering rules to ‘silence critics’: Amnesty
Short Url
https://arab.news/r8u9e
India using anti-money laundering rules to ‘silence critics’: Amnesty
- Critics say Modi’s government has sought to pressure rights groups by heavily scrutinizing their finances
Morocco's cereals harvest expected to double after wet winter
RABAT: Moroccan grains traders and millers expect Morocco to double its cereals harvest this season after abundant winter rains, with limited impact from floods in the northwestern plains of the North African country, which is a major grains importer.
Industry leaders plan to add domestic wheat to strategic reserves this year "without compromising imports", said Moulay Abdelkader Alaoui, head of the federation of industrial millers FNM, who expects a domestic harvest of 6 million metric tons.
"We expect a good cereals harvest this year of 8 to 9 million tons, including around 5 million tons of soft wheat," Omar Yacoubi, head of Morocco's wheat trading federation FNCL, told Reuters. The previous harvest was 4.4 million tons, including 2.4 million tons of soft wheat.
Morocco traditionally cancels its wheat import subsidy and reinstates customs duties to protect the local harvest.
But this year importers, millers and traders have asked the government to extend the subsidy window to June 1, instead of May 1, to compensate for costs incurred due to bad weather.
Rainfall this winter was 34% above the 30-year average and triple the previous year's levels, while dam filling rates improved to 70% from about 25%, agriculture ministry data shows, while the total grain-planted area rose to 3.7 million hectares, from 2.6 million the year before.
Flooding in the fertile northwestern plains, which destroyed 110,000 hectares, had a "localised" impact, Yacoubi said, with wheat losses to be offset by higher yields in larger plains.
DELAYED SHIPPING
Large swells and storms since mid-December have disrupted port operations at Casablanca and Jorf Lasfar, which handle 80% of Morocco's wheat imports.
Shipping delays have weighed heavily on importers, even as international wheat prices remain below the subsidy eligibility threshold, Yacoubi said, adding that as of this week, 70 ships carrying 1 million tons of wheat were queued outside ports, leading to low stock levels.
Moroccan importers are paying about $20,000 per day for ships waiting offshore, pushing them to request an extension of the government subsidy programme.
Traditionally, only half of Morocco's harvest reaches industrial mills because small farmers retain wheat for their own use, but Alaoui said this year's plentiful rainfall should improve crop quality and encourage more collection.
French exporters expect to supply about two-thirds of Morocco's soft wheat import needs, or 3.5 million tons.
From June 2025 to January 2026, Morocco imported 7 million tons of grains, up 12% year-on-year, including 3.2 million tons of soft wheat.
During the same period, France topped Morocco's soft wheat suppliers with 2.26 million tons, followed by Argentina with 233,144 tons, Russia with 227,070 tons, Germany with 120,084 tons and the U.S. with 94,688 tons.
Industry leaders plan to add domestic wheat to strategic reserves this year "without compromising imports", said Moulay Abdelkader Alaoui, head of the federation of industrial millers FNM, who expects a domestic harvest of 6 million metric tons.
"We expect a good cereals harvest this year of 8 to 9 million tons, including around 5 million tons of soft wheat," Omar Yacoubi, head of Morocco's wheat trading federation FNCL, told Reuters. The previous harvest was 4.4 million tons, including 2.4 million tons of soft wheat.
Morocco traditionally cancels its wheat import subsidy and reinstates customs duties to protect the local harvest.
But this year importers, millers and traders have asked the government to extend the subsidy window to June 1, instead of May 1, to compensate for costs incurred due to bad weather.
Rainfall this winter was 34% above the 30-year average and triple the previous year's levels, while dam filling rates improved to 70% from about 25%, agriculture ministry data shows, while the total grain-planted area rose to 3.7 million hectares, from 2.6 million the year before.
Flooding in the fertile northwestern plains, which destroyed 110,000 hectares, had a "localised" impact, Yacoubi said, with wheat losses to be offset by higher yields in larger plains.
DELAYED SHIPPING
Large swells and storms since mid-December have disrupted port operations at Casablanca and Jorf Lasfar, which handle 80% of Morocco's wheat imports.
Shipping delays have weighed heavily on importers, even as international wheat prices remain below the subsidy eligibility threshold, Yacoubi said, adding that as of this week, 70 ships carrying 1 million tons of wheat were queued outside ports, leading to low stock levels.
Moroccan importers are paying about $20,000 per day for ships waiting offshore, pushing them to request an extension of the government subsidy programme.
Traditionally, only half of Morocco's harvest reaches industrial mills because small farmers retain wheat for their own use, but Alaoui said this year's plentiful rainfall should improve crop quality and encourage more collection.
French exporters expect to supply about two-thirds of Morocco's soft wheat import needs, or 3.5 million tons.
From June 2025 to January 2026, Morocco imported 7 million tons of grains, up 12% year-on-year, including 3.2 million tons of soft wheat.
During the same period, France topped Morocco's soft wheat suppliers with 2.26 million tons, followed by Argentina with 233,144 tons, Russia with 227,070 tons, Germany with 120,084 tons and the U.S. with 94,688 tons.
Latest updates
Recommended
© 2026 SAUDI RESEARCH & PUBLISHING COMPANY, All Rights Reserved And subject to Terms of Use Agreement.