The Supreme Court has criticised federal and provincial governments for failing to take adequate steps to regulate foreign funded NGOs’ activities in Pakistan, six months after the National Action Plan against terrorism was announced.
“We find it quite amazing that although the registration, funding, etc of NGOs is supposedly covered/regulated by four basic statutes – the Societies Registration Act, 1860; the Trust Act, 1832; the Voluntary Social Welfare Agencies (Registration & Control) Rules, 1962 and the Companies Ordinance, 1984 – the five governments appear not to have relevant figures and statistics in respect of the NGOs, their sources of funding, their principals and office-bearers, and other relevant information,” reads the order passed by a three-judge bench on Wednesday.
