Reveal names of donors: Chidambaram on PM-CARES fund

The PM-CARES fund received Rs 3,076 crore in the first five days of its existence, an audit statement said, prompting the Opposition to demand details of the donors.

The audit statement released on the PM-CARES website states that the fund was set up with an initial corpus of Rs 2.25 lakh, received Rs 3,075.85 crore through voluntary contributions, Rs 39.67 lakh from foreign contributions and Rs 35.32 lakh as interest income.

Former Finance Minister P Chidambaram slammed the Modi government for not revealing the list of donors to the PM-CARES fund that has found itself in Opposition cross-hairs since its launch on March 27.

“The auditors of PM-CARES Fund have confirmed that the Fund received Rs 3,076 crore in just five days between March 26 and 31, 2020. But the names of these generous donors will not be revealed. Why?” asked the senior Congress leader.

The one-page audited statement mentions donations received under voluntary contributions and foreign contributions with details apparently appended to accompanying note 4. However, the accompanying notes have not been uploaded on the website.

“Every other NGO or Trust is obliged to reveal the names of donors contributing more than a threshold amount. Why is the PM-CARES fund exempt from this obligation,” Chidambaram asked.

Opposition has been questioning the need for a separate fund at a time when the Prime Minister’s National Relief Fund was already in existence.

Congress has accused the Modi government of being opaque about PM-CARES by not allowing it to be audited by the Comptroller and Auditor General and keeping it out of the purview of the Right to Information Act.

The Centre for Public Interest Litigation had moved the Supreme Court demanding that the funds received by PM-CARES be transferred into the Prime Minister’s National Relief Fund or the National Disaster Response Fund (NDRF).

The apex court had turned down the plea to transfer the PM-CARES fund to the NDRF.