NEW DELHI: More trouble seems to be brewing for Greenpeace with the Intelligence Bureau asking the finance ministry to withdraw the environmental lobby group’s income-tax exemption citing alleged financial irregularities.IB has written to Revenue Secretary Shaktikanta Das , giving detailed account of the alleged violation of the provisions of Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Act as also some of its activities that ran counter to its stated objectives, two persons privy to the matter said. The move drew a scathing response from Greenpeace India.“We are not surprised the government is using institutional power to orchestrate an attack on Greenpeace... This is yet another action that we will contest and assert our legitimate status as a non-profit charity involved in environmental protection,” Executive Director Samit Aich told ET.The IB reference, which would be passed on to tax authorities, could well act as a concrete ground for withdrawal of tax benefits enjoyed by the NGO . The Finance Act, 2014, passed in July tightened provisions for tax exemption by charitable entities such as trusts. The amendments empowered tax authorities to cancel registration of such entities if their income did not “enure” for the benefit of general public or any income or property of the trust was used for the benefit of specified persons such as the author of trust or trustees, or its funds were invested in prohibited modes.The Union home ministry had earlier this month suspended the NGO’s FCRA licence for 180 days, thereby blocking its foreign funding. In its notice to Greenpeace, the ministry alleged it had found multiple transfers to several accounts including inter-account transfers from utilisation account without any intimation or permission of the government.“...the association has under-reported and repeatedly mentioned incorrect amount of foreign contribution received in violation of FCRA. The most glaring example being foreign contribution opening balance for 2008-09, which was reported as ‘NIL’ in auditor’s certificate but was actually Rs 6.6 crore.Greenpeace India subsequently admitted the same and claimed it to be a typographical error, which is not tenable,” it said. Aich criticised the “spurious line of attack”.“No less an authority than the high court has said the government’s attack on Greenpeace is untenable. We have nothing whatever to hide and will continue to campaign for a sustainable and just future for Indians.”The home ministry’s move to block the NGO’s foreign funding seems to have been triggered by suspicion that it had deprived Indians of low-cost energy by derailing the Mahan coal project and the fear that it would target eight more power plants.The ministry’s inspection report on Greenpeace India, dated March 4, 2015, says the NGO would indulge next in “protest-creation” to target eight other locations, potentially impacting 40,000 mw of thermal power generation. The report has listed five ultra-mega power projects at Sasan (Madhya Pradesh), Krishnapatnam (Andhra Pradesh), Girye (Maharashtra) Sundargarh (Odisha) and Mundra (Gujarat) as future targets.Greenpeace International has accused the government of running a harassment campaign against its Indian arm. “We are confident that there have been no violations of Indian laws and look forward to Greenpeace India defending itself against the charges made by the Indian government,” it had told ET earlier this month.