Official records and verified news reports confirm that while the CBI has booked Tatak and is investigating the FCRA case, no arrest has been made under these fabricated charges, nor does the CBI FIR mention any funding links to China or political parties
KRC TIMES NE Desk
ITANAGAR / GUWAHATI:
As grassroots opposition to mega-hydropower projects intensifies across Arunachal Pradesh, prominent environmental activist and lawyer Bhanu Tatak has come under the scanner of the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) over alleged violations of foreign funding laws. However, recent viral social media posts claiming that Tatak has been arrested and linked to funds from China and the Congress party have been found to be factually unverified and misleading.
The Official CBI Case Under FCRA
Acting on a referral from the Union Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA), the CBI registered an FIR against Tatak under the Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Act (FCRA), 2010.
According to official documents from the preliminary enquiry, the central agency alleges that Tatak received approximately ₹20.94 lakh (with specific tranches over a three-year period pegged at over ₹17.6 lakh) directly into her personal savings bank account from overseas sources—including organisations based in the United Kingdom and the Philippines—without holding mandatory FCRA registration or prior central government clearance.
The agency further alleged that Tatak had not filed income tax returns declaring these foreign receipts between 2017–18 and 2025–26, and claimed the funds were utilized to “organise and sustain” anti-dam protests in Arunachal Pradesh. The MHA has also instructed investigators to notify competent authorities if any violations under the Income Tax Act, 1961, or the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), 2002, surface during the probe.
Separating Fact from Viral Misinformation
In late October, a sensationalised graphic began circulating across social media platforms claiming that Tatak had been arrested, handed over to the CBI, and accused by neighbors of receiving funds from China and the Congress party to “create chaos in Arunachal.”
Official records and verified news reports confirm that while the CBI has booked Tatak and is investigating the FCRA case, no arrest has been made under these fabricated charges, nor does the CBI FIR mention any funding links to China or political parties.
Responding to the probe, Likeng Libang, General Secretary of the Siang Indigenous Farmers’ Forum (SIFF), defended the activist’s integrity, stating that Tatak is a dedicated social worker who works for the people of India and may have received standard honorariums for her research and professional work rather than illicit funding.
Who is Bhanu Tatak?
An indigenous Adi woman from Siang district and an alumna of Delhi University’s Miranda House, Tatak serves as the Legal Advisor to the Siang Indigenous Farmers’ Forum (SIFF) and Coordinator of the civil society group Dibang Resistance (DR).
She has been a leading voice against two major projects in the region:
- The Siang Upper Multipurpose Project (SUMP): A proposed 11,500 to 12,500 MW mega-hydropower project on the Siang River.
- The Dibang Multipurpose Project: A 2,880 MW hydropower project on the Dibang River.
Alongside indigenous villagers, Tatak has consistently argued that the proposed Siang mega-dam poses an existential threat to the Adi community, warning of massive displacement, the submergence of ancestral villages and agricultural land, and irreversible ecological damage in a seismically sensitive and biodiversity-rich zone. SIFF has also maintained that the project is being pushed through without the free, prior, and informed consent of affected tribal communities.
Ground Zero: Unrest in the Siang Valley
The legal scrutiny against Tatak comes at a critical juncture in the Siang Valley. Tensions escalated recently following the deployment of Central Armed Police Forces (CAPF) to facilitate Pre-Feasibility Report (PFR) surveys for the mega-dam.
Tatak and local community organisations condemned the deployment of armed forces for dam surveys, calling it an arbitrary use of administrative power that undermines constitutional rights. While the state and central governments maintain that the Siang project is vital for national water security and flood moderation—particularly as a strategic counterweight to China’s upstream infrastructure—indigenous forums continue to demand the withdrawal of security forces and a halt to forced survey activities.
For further broadcast coverage and reactions from local leadership on the investigation, watch the report on Bhanu Tatak Under CBI Scanner Over ₹20.94 Lakh Foreign Funds; SIFF Leader Responds, which details the specific overseas funding allegations and features the response from SIFF General Secretary Likeng Libang.
