Overview

• A bench of Justices Vikram Nath and Sandeep Mehta rejected the Union’s plea, leaving the Madras High Court’s June 2025 direction for renewal in place.
• The High Court had ordered authorities to process and grant renewal under Section 16 within four weeks after noting no evidence of misappropriation or diversion.
• The Union had refused renewal in December 2021 alleging Section 7 violations based on fund transfers among related NGOs without prior permission.
• Questioning the basis for refusal, the Supreme Court told the government to let the NGO file annual accounts and not further harass it.
• The case concerns the Ellen Sharma Memorial Trust and a sister NGO, which report 70–75% of revenue from foreign donations and argue the 2020 prior-permission rule should not apply to earlier transfers.