<p> New York headquartered global private foundation – Ford Foundation – is now at the receiving end of Gujarat government’s ire, for funding Teesta Setalvad’s organisation, Sabrang Trust, in the past.<br /><br /></p>.<p>It has been reported that Ford Foundation had extended a donation of about $540,000 to Sabrang Trust and Sabrang Communication and Publishing Pvt Limited (SCPPL) to "address communalism, caste-based discrimination in India, including media strategies".<br /><br />The state government, in a letter addressed to the Union Home ministry, accused the US-based Foundation of "direct interference ... in the internal affairs of the country and of abetting communal disharmony in India", calling the organisations (run by Teesta and her husband Javed) as “proxy offices of Ford Foundation”.<br /><br />“We have written a letter to Rajnath Singh seeking probe into the role of Setalvad’s NGO (Sabrang Trust) after we found out funds given to the NGO were misused,” Gujarat Minister of State for Home Rajnikant Patel told mediapersons.<br /><br />The state claims that the Ford Foundation interfered with the judicial system, defamed Indian military and acted against its stated goal of promoting communal harmony. It goes on to allege that the funding agency egged on Setalvad's NGOs to advocate “a religion specific and Muslim supportive criminal code and also keep the 2002 riots incident alive“. The Ford Foundation has also been accused of “blatantly supporting one religion (Islam) with a strange argument that it helps secular democracy”.<br /><br />Set up in 1936, the Ford Foundation which carries a tagline – Working with Visionaries on the Frontlines of Social Change Worldwide - is one of the most influential foundations in the world. With global reach, the Foundation claims to have special interest in the fields of Democratic and Accountable government, Economic Fairness, Freedom of Expression, Human Rights, Sustainable Development and Education, among many other social issues. <br /><br />The foundation makes grants through its headquarters and ten international field offices.<br />Other than Teesta Setalvad’s organisation, the Ford Foundation is also believed to have funded some projects of Medha Patkar and Mallika Sarabhai, both perceived not favourably by many in Gujarat and its establishment for years, if not decades.<br /></p>
<p> New York headquartered global private foundation – Ford Foundation – is now at the receiving end of Gujarat government’s ire, for funding Teesta Setalvad’s organisation, Sabrang Trust, in the past.<br /><br /></p>.<p>It has been reported that Ford Foundation had extended a donation of about $540,000 to Sabrang Trust and Sabrang Communication and Publishing Pvt Limited (SCPPL) to "address communalism, caste-based discrimination in India, including media strategies".<br /><br />The state government, in a letter addressed to the Union Home ministry, accused the US-based Foundation of "direct interference ... in the internal affairs of the country and of abetting communal disharmony in India", calling the organisations (run by Teesta and her husband Javed) as “proxy offices of Ford Foundation”.<br /><br />“We have written a letter to Rajnath Singh seeking probe into the role of Setalvad’s NGO (Sabrang Trust) after we found out funds given to the NGO were misused,” Gujarat Minister of State for Home Rajnikant Patel told mediapersons.<br /><br />The state claims that the Ford Foundation interfered with the judicial system, defamed Indian military and acted against its stated goal of promoting communal harmony. It goes on to allege that the funding agency egged on Setalvad's NGOs to advocate “a religion specific and Muslim supportive criminal code and also keep the 2002 riots incident alive“. The Ford Foundation has also been accused of “blatantly supporting one religion (Islam) with a strange argument that it helps secular democracy”.<br /><br />Set up in 1936, the Ford Foundation which carries a tagline – Working with Visionaries on the Frontlines of Social Change Worldwide - is one of the most influential foundations in the world. With global reach, the Foundation claims to have special interest in the fields of Democratic and Accountable government, Economic Fairness, Freedom of Expression, Human Rights, Sustainable Development and Education, among many other social issues. <br /><br />The foundation makes grants through its headquarters and ten international field offices.<br />Other than Teesta Setalvad’s organisation, the Ford Foundation is also believed to have funded some projects of Medha Patkar and Mallika Sarabhai, both perceived not favourably by many in Gujarat and its establishment for years, if not decades.<br /></p>
