The government on Tuesday indicated its willingness to refer the controversial Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Amendment Bill-2026 to a joint committee of both Houses of Parliament even as sections in the Opposition demanded its complete withdrawal.Top sources said the Bill could be sent to a joint parliamentary committee (JPC) to enable larger stakeholder consultations and a resolution to this effect may be moved in the Lok Sabha as early as Wednesday.Several Christian bodies led by the Catholic Bishops Conference of India, the Chief Ministers of Mizoram and Nagaland, the Congress, Trinamool Congress and the DMK have been opposing any move to pilot the draft law. Introduced in the Lok Sabha on March 25, the Bill provides for greater government scrutiny of NGOs and foreign funding and explicitly bars the use of such finances for religious conversions.Discussions on the agenda took place today at the meeting of the Business Advisory Committee of the Rajya Sabha, chaired by CP Radhakrishnan. The Congress, TMC and the DMK demanded that the Bill be completely withdrawn, but the government indicated it could be sent to a joint panel of both Houses.Prez gives assent to Vande Mataram BillPresident Droupadi Murmu has given assent to a Bill that criminalises intentional disruption or prevention of the singing of the national song, ‘Vande Mataram’, giving it the same legal protection as the national anthem.Importantly, the government needs only a simple majority to pass the Bill, which continues to be the House property having been introduced earlier. It can be taken up any time, but the government sources said they would send the Bill to a panel in the wake of lack of consensus right now.The government had earlier followed the same route for another controversial Bill—the Waqf (Amendment) Bill-2024. This Bill was introduced in the Lok Sabha on August 8, 2024, and a day later referred to a joint committee of both Houses of Parliament, chaired by BJP’s Jagdambika Pal. The Bill was finally passed by Parliament in April 2025.Official sources indicated that the concessions on the FCRA Bill could bolster the government’s position in negotiations with the DMK on support to the pending delimitation and women’s quota Bill agenda.The DMK has 22 MPs in the Lok Sabha and eight in the Rajya Sabha. Their backing to the Bill can help the government come closer to a special two-thirds majority of the MPs present and voting in both Houses, which is needed to pass a constitution amendment Bill. Indications are that the delimitation Bill may be brought in a special session later since the monsoon session ends on August 13.