The Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) has informed the Delhi High Court on Tuesday that the PM CARES Fund is not a “State” under Article 12 of the Indian Constitution and does not constitute as a “public authority” under the Right to Information Act, 2005.
According to the affidavit filed by the PMO’s Under Secretary, the PM CARES Fund was established as a Public Charitable Trust and was not established by or under the Indian Constitution, Parliament, or any State Legislature.
The affidavit states that, “This Trust is neither intended to be or is in fact owned, controlled or substantially financed by any Government nor any instrumentality of the Government. There is no direct or indirect control of either the Central Government or any State Governments in functioning of the Trust in any manner whatsoever.”
The PMO has also stated that the PMCARES Fund only accepts voluntary donations from individuals and institutions, and that contributions from the budgetary sources of the government or from the balance sheets of public sector undertakings are not accepted.
“Contributions to the PMCARES Fund/Trust are exempt under the Income Tax Act of 1961, but this alone does not justify the conclusion that it is a “Public Authority,” it stated.
It has also submitted that the funds cannot be called a public authority because the purpose for which it was established is “purely charitable,” and that neither the funds are used for any Government projects nor is the Trust are governed by any Government policies.
“So, the PMCARES cannot be labelled as ‘Public Authority’. The contributions and corpus of PMCARES have no remote nexus with the Consolidated Fund of India,” the response adds.
The PMO has stated that the PM Cares Fund does not have any government character “since no guidelines can be laid down for disbursement of the amount from the funds,” stating that the fund or trust did not originate as a result of a government action or function.
“That the PM CARES Fund is a public charitable trust comprising of voluntary donations made by individuals and institutions and is not a business of the Central Government. Besides, the PM CARES Fund does not receive funds or funding from the government,” the response continues.
It has also been submitted that the PM CARES Fund, as well as grants sanctioned from the fund, are publicly available on the website “pmcares.gov.in,” and that its Audited Reports are already available on the website.
“Subsequent audited details of accounts will also be made available on the website, as and when due. As a result, the petitioner’s assumptions about arbitrariness or lack of transparency are devoid of merit,” the response says.
The PMO has also argued that the PM CARES Fund is administered on the pattern of Prime Minister’s National Relief Fund (PMNRF) as both are chaired by the Prime Minister.
The response adds that, just as the National Emblem and domain name ‘gov.in’ are used for the PMNRF, the same are used for the PM CARES Fund.
“The responding Respondent respectfully submits that the composition of the Board of Trustees consisting of ex officio holders of public office is merely for administrative convenience and smooth succession to the trusteeship and is neither intended to be nor does it in fact result in any governmental control in the functioning of the Trust in any way whatsoever,” the reply adds.
The PMO has opposed Samyak Gangwal’s petition, which sought a declaration that the PM CARES Fund is a “State” under Article 12 of the Indian Constitution.
The affidavit questions the petitioner’s locus standi, stating that the plea is based on “apprehensions and suppositions” and that a constitutional question should not be decided in a vacuum.
“The present petition, while admittedly preferred in vacuum, by way of clever drafting attempts (but fails to establish) to espouse and agitate a cause of certain groups with vested interest for extraneous reasons,” the response reads.
Gangwal has sought a declaration of the PM CARES Fund as a State. This, he said, would attract consequential directions for disclosing the Fund’s audit reports periodically; the Fund’s quarterly details of donations received, utilisation thereof, and resolutions on donation expenditure.
Alternatively, it is contended that if the PM CARES Fund is not a State under Article 12, then the Centre should widely publicize that it is not a government-owned fund. The petition also seeks that the PM CARES Fund refrain from using the “PM” in its name/website, the State Emblem, the domain name “gov” in its website, and the PM’s Office as its official address.
