PM CARES Fund not of govt, third party info can’t be revealed under RTI, Delhi HC told

An affidavit filed by an under secretary at the PMO has said the trust functions with transparency and its funds are audited by an auditor

The Centre on Tuesday told the Delhi High Court that PM CARES Fund is not a government fund as donations to it do not go to the Consolidated Fund of India and no third-party information can be provided through the Right to Information (RTI) Act.

A written document filed by an under secretary at the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO), who is discharging his functions in the PM Cares Trust on honorary basis, 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 India.

It contended that irrespective of the status of the Prime Minister's Citizen Assistance and Relief in Emergency Situations Fund (PM CARES Fund) under the Constitution and the RTI Act, it is not permissible to disclose third-party information.

"There is no control of either the central or any state governments, direct or indirect, in the functioning of the PM Cares Fund in any manner whatsoever. This Trust is not created by the Constitution or any law. It is not owned, controlled or financed by any government," it said.

The affidavit was filed in response to a petition seeking a direction to declare the PM CARES Fund a 'State' under the Constitution to ensure transparency in its functioning.

Another petition was also filed to declare PM CARES as a "public authority" under the RTI Act.

A bench of Chief Justice Satish Chandra Sharma and Justice Subramonium Prasad, which heard the arguments on behalf of petitioner Samyak Gangwal, asked the office of Solicitor General Tushar Mehta to inform the court about his availability to argue the case.

The affidavit filed by Pradeep Kumar Srivastava, Under Secretary at the PMO, said the prayers made in the present petition are not maintainable as PM CARES does not constitute a "public authority" under the provisions of the RTI Act.

“The PM CARES Fund has been set up as a Public Charitable Trust. This Trust is not created by or under the Constitution of India or by any law made by the Parliament or by any State Legislature," it said.