India’s Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Tuesday conducted searches at eight locations in Bengaluru as part of an investigation into foreign exchange violations involving the Open Society Foundations (OSF)—founded by American billionaire George Soros—and its impact investment arm, the Soros Economic Development Fund (SEDF).
Sources told Indian media the searches were “carried out under the Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA) and involve the OSF along with various international human rights organizations,” The Economic Times reported.
The investigation centers on allegations that OSF procured foreign direct investment (FDI) and that some beneficiaries misappropriated these funds in violation of FEMA guidelines.
“Our teams carried out raids at eight locations on Tuesday in Bengaluru to investigate contraventions in foreign direct investment rules by SEDF and OSF in investments in various entities/individuals in India and subsequent utilization of those funds,” said one unnamed officer, the Hindustan Times added.
According to the reports, Soros-backed OSF sent nearly $3 billion to more than a dozen entities throughout India.
The unnamed officer added that a “preliminary investigation has revealed that OSF was put under the prior reference category by the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) in 2016, thereby restricting it from giving unregulated donations to NGOs in India.”
“However, in order to bypass this restriction, OSF set up subsidiaries in India and brought in funds in the form of FDI and consultancy fees, and these funds have been used to fund activities of the NGOs which is a FEMA contravention”, the officer added.
The Times reported that OSF began operating in India, the world’s largest democracy, in 1999, but that the Soros-founded group does not have any actual offices in the country.
In November, the then-Biden-controlled Federal Communications Commission (FCC) expedited its decision to approve a deal allowing Democrat megadonor Soros to acquire a major stake in over 200 radio stations.
Fox News reported at the time that the move has prompted an investigation by the House Oversight Committee, which is concerned about potential “politicization” and its impact on the 2024 presidential election.
The FCC’s approval of Soros’ acquisition of more than 200 Audacy radio stations drew criticism from a Republican commissioner who expressed objections to the decision, as well as other GOP members of Congress who see the move as blatantly partisan.
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