Don't want every Tom, Dick and Harry to raise funds for treatments, some govt control needed: Kerala HC

Justice P B Suresh Kumar said the court does not want to interdict the crowdfunding process, but it wants the funds to go to the government

The Kerala High Court on Friday expressed concerns over the raising of huge amounts through crowdfunding by individuals and YouTubers citing charity and observed that the government should frame policies to verify the source of such funds and their proper utilisation.

Every Tom, Dick, and Harry was collecting funds via crowdfunding. There has to be some government control over the money being collected via crowdfunding even for charity. The sources of the funds should be also examined. Such transactions may even destabilise the economy. The court did not want to interdict the crowdfunding process. But the funds should go to the government rather than into the accounts of private individuals or Youtubers, the court said.

A bench of justice P B Suresh Kumar made the observation while considering the petition of a father seeking government assistance for a child suffering from Spinal Muscular Atrophy (SMA) as the Zolgensma prescribed for him costs Rs 18 crore. Recently, another child from Kannur suffering from the same disease got Rs 18 crore through crowdfunding.

Read | Rs 18 crore raised through crowdfunding for Kerala boy's treatment

The court also asked that if individuals could raise up to Rs 18 crore through crowdfunding in a short span of time, why was it that the state government could not pool such amounts.

The court had earlier directed the state government to constitute a medical board to look into the medical condition of the child suffering from SMA. The state government informed that 102 children in the state were suffering from the disease of which 42 got the treatment. The state government also urged the centre to give tax and duty exemptions for importing medicine for the child in Kannur for whom funds were raised through crowdfunding.

Meanwhile, a mother and daughter were held by the Kochi city police on Friday in connection with siphoning off funds raised through crowdfunding. They allegedly used the picture of a three-year-old child under treatment at a private hospital and gave their bank account in a message seeking assistance. The funds that reached the account were also suspected to be diverted to other bank accounts. The police were yet to confirm the amount allegedly siphoned off.

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