New Delhi: The Prime Minister’s Citizen Assistance and Relief in Emergency Situation Fund (PM-CARES Fund) formed by the Prime Minister Narendra Modi in March 2020 for extending assistance to the citizens in wake of Covid-19 pandemic did not go down well many political parties with senior opposition leaders questioning the veracity of it and eventually the matter was dragged to court.
The Centre Thursday told the Delhi High Court that the PM-CARES Fund a charitable trust under the law and not a "fund of the Government of India" and its amount does not go in the Consolidated Fund of India.
In a reply the Under Secretary at the PMO Pradeep Kumar Srivastava said, “Irrespective of whether the trust is a “State” or other authority within the meaning of Article 12 of the Constitution of India and or whether it is a ‘public authority’ within the meaning of section 2[h] of Right to Information Act, Section 8 in general and that of provisions contained in sub section [e] and [j], in particular, of the Right to Information Act, it is not permissible to disclose third party information."
The submission comes in the wake of a petition seeking that PM-CARES Fund be declared as ‘The State’ under Article 12 of the Constitution.
The plea contends that citizens of the country are aggrieved that a fund set up by the Prime Minister and with trustees like the PM and ministers of Home, Defence and Finance has been declared to be a fund over which there is no government control.
Further, Srivastava told the court he functions in the trust on an honorary basis and that the trust functions with transparency and its funds are audited by an auditor who is a Chartered Accountant from the panel prepared by the Comptroller and Auditor General of India.
“To ensure transparency, the audited report is put on the official website of the trust along with the details of utilisation of funds received by the trust,” the reply said.
It said all donations received by the trust are through online payments, cheques and or demand drafts. The amount so received is audited and the expenditure of the trust fund displayed on the website, it said.
