ED raids NGO run by climate activist over FEMA violations

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Monday carried out searches on premises linked to a non-government organisation (NGO) run by climate activist Harjeet Singh and his wife Jyoti Awasthi.

ED is investigating foreign funds worth over ₹6 crore received by Singh’s organisation, Satat Sampada Private Ltd (SSPL), to allegedly run narratives to influence the government policies in the energy sector, people familiar with the development said. Singh is a familiar face at multilateral climate forums as an advocate for the rights of the Global South.

The searches were carried out at the residence of Singh, and the NGO’s offices in Delhi and Ghaziabad, for violations under the foreign exchange management act or FEMA. The agency did not say what evidence it found regarding the alleged FEMA violations in the raids.

However, officials, on condition of anonymity, said the teams found around 45 bottles of liquor at Singh’s residence, which violates the excise rules, officials said.

Sanjay Singh, assistant excise commissioner (Ghaziabad) told HT , “We have sent a team to Harjeet Singh’s residence based on ED’s information. A first information report (FIR) will be registered for violation of excise rules and action will be taken”.

An officer who didn’t want to be named said, “SSPL and its founders have received substantial foreign inward remittances between 2021 and 2025. These remittances were received in the guise of consultancy charges. However, cross verification of the filings made by the remitters abroad has shown that these transfers were actually being made to run narratives in India to further the cause of Fossil Fuel-Non Proliferation Treaty (FF-NPT), which may seriously impact the energy security of India”.

The Fossil Fuel Non-Proliferation Treaty is an initiative to create a legally binding mechanism to halt the expansion of coal, oil and gas exploitation and manage a fair transition towards renewable energy resources. India is not part of this activist-driven campaign. It is mainly a global civil society campaign with endorsement from hundreds of cities, the World Health Organisation and Nobel laureates, among others.

This officer said that SSPL’s activities such as encouraging organic practices in agriculture and in supporting farmers in marketing organic fruits and vegetables are only the front cover activity and that “actual use of this company is to promote FF-NPT in India on behalf of foreign influencer groups”.

Sharing details of remittances, a second ED officer said the NGO’s major funders are Climate Action Network (CAN), Oyster HR and Stand Earth.

HT reached out to Harjeet Singh for a comment but did not get a response till the time of going to print.