The deed of trust now released does not define PM-CARES as a government trust. (Archive)
New Delhi:
Is the PM-CARES fund created for Covid a private or government trust? While it has been defined as a government trust for the purpose of corporate giving, a clause in the trust documents calls it a private entity, exempting it from RTI’s scrutiny.
The PM-CARES fund has been registered with the Delhi Revenue Department, with the Prime Minister as chairman of a trust. But the trust deed that was released now does not define it as a government trust.
Item 5.3 of the trust deed reads: “The trust is not intended to be or is actually owned, controlled or substantially financed by any government or any government agency. There is no control from either the central government or the state governments, either directly or indirectly, in the operation of the trust in any way. “
PM-CARES or the Prime Minister’s Fund for Citizen Assistance and Aid in Emergency Situations was created by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in March to “deal with emergency or distress situations such as the coronavirus pandemic.” It is managed by a trust with PM Modi as chairman and senior members of the cabinet as trustees.
The trust was registered on March 27. The next day, on March 28, the Ministry of Corporate Affairs issued an office memorandum qualifying PM-CARES as a corporate social responsibility (CSR) initiative to receive corporate donations.
The Business Law, which defines the activities that can receive corporate donations, says: “Contribution to the Prime Minister’s National Aid Fund or any other fund established by the Central Government or state governments for socio-economic development and aid and funds for the welfare of programmed castes, programmed tribes, other backward classes, minorities, and women. “
Documents accessed by activist Anjali Bhardwaj through an RTI inquiry reveal that the Ministry of Corporate Affairs, when issuing the Office Memorandum on March 28, defined it as a “fund created by the central government.” .
But the deed of trust from a day earlier said it was not managed by the government, so PM-CARES could not have been eligible for corporate donations.
Almost two months later, on May 26, the Ministry of Corporate Affairs incorporated the PM-CARES Fund into the Companies Law, in addition to the PM National Aid Fund, with retroactive effect as of March 28.
Which means that for two months, PM-CARES was a private entity that received corporate donations.
Former Finance Minister P Chidambaram posed in a tweet on August 20 the question: “If the Fund is an established private fund, why are donations to the fund counted against CSR?”
If the Fund was not created by the central government, why are the prime minister and three ministers acting as trustees? Who named them trustees?
If the Fund is an established private fund, why are donations to the CSR Fund counted?
– P. Chidambaram (@PChidambaram_IN) August 20, 2020
NDTV had filed an RTI application with the Prime Minister’s Office requesting the same deed of trust, but the application was rejected as the fund is not a public entity.
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