Delhi HC lists for hearing on Jan 31 pleas on PM CARES Fund

The Delhi High Court on Friday listed for hearing on January 31 pleas concerning the legal status of the Prime Ministers Citizen Assistance and Relief in Emergency Situations Fund PM CARES Fund under the Constitution and the Right to Information ActA bench of Chief Justice Satish Chandra Sharma and Justice Subramonium Prasad also granted four weeks time to the Centre to file its reply in the matter in terms of an earlier order passed by the courtIn July the court had asked the Centre to file a detailed and exhaustive reply on the petition by Samyak Gangwal seeking to declare the PM CARES Fund a State under Article 12 of the Constitution to ensure transparency in its functioningThe court had then noted that only a onepage reply was filed to such an important issue and said it wanted an extensive response by the governmentAnother petition filed by the same petitioner seeks to declare the fund a public authority under the Right to Information RTI Act It is also pending in the court which had earlier sought the Centres reply on itAlso Read Delhi liquor policy ED conducts fresh raids at 40 locationAn affidavit filed by an Under Secretary in the Prime Ministers Office PMO who is discharging his functions in the PM Cares Trust on an honorary basis in response to the 2021 petition has said the trust functions with transparency and its funds are audited by an auditor a chartered accountant drawn from the panel prepared by the Comptroller and Auditor General of IndiaIt has contended that irrespective of the status of the PM CARES Fund under the Constitution and the RTI Act it is not permissible to disclose third party informationThe Centre has said that all donations received by the trust are received via online payments cheques or demand drafts and the amount received is audited with the audited report and the expenditure of the trust fund displayed on the websiteThe officer who had filed the affidavit has also said he was discharging his functions in the PM CARES Trust on an honorary basis which was a charitable trust not created by or under the Constitution or by any law made by Parliament or by any State legislatureIn support of his contention that the PM CARES Fund is a State the petitioner has said it was formed by the Prime Minister on March 27 2020 to extend assistance to the citizens of India in the wake of COVID19 The trustees of the fund are the prime minister defence minister home minister and the finance minister and immediately after the formation of the fund the Centre through its high government functionaries represented that the fund was set up and operated by the Government of India the petitioner has submittedThe representations also included the use of government resources such as use of httpgovingovin domain name State Emblem of India and the name Prime Minister and its abbreviation on the PM Cares Fund website and in other official and unofficial communicationsFurther the official address of the PM CARES Fund was stated to be the Prime Ministers Office South Block New Delhi the petition has saidBased on these representations huge donations were received by the PM CARES Fund and as per the information provided on its website during the financial year 201920 an amount of Rs 307662 crore was collected merely within four days it has submittedThe petitioner is not attributing or even alleging any wrongdoing whatsoever on the part of the present ExOfficio trustees of the PM CARES Fund However since the PM CARES Funds trustees are high government functionaries it is essential that checks and balances envisioned in Part III of the Constitution are put in the place on the functioning of the fund to extinguish any chance of an allegation of quid pro quo the plea has saidThis story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed agencies Midday accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability trustworthiness reliability and data of the text Midday managementmiddaycom reserves the sole right to alter delete or remove without notice the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever