Country needs strong laws to manage the NGOs: SC
Identifying the reality that there is no proper law to regulate the financial dealings of the NGOs and the new law which has been articulated by the Union Rural Development Ministry is not enough to make sure that the NGOs are properly managing their funds and are using it for the purpose for which it has been amassed, the Supreme Court of India has directed the central government to articulate a feasible law in order to ensure that no wrong is being done by the NGOs with the money collected by them, as more and more cases regarding the financial fraud are being reported every day by the respected authorities degrading the dignity of other NGOs which are sincerely working for the benefit of the public.
This historical verdict has been made by the three-judge panel headed by CJI J S Khehar as a response to the PIL alleging misuse of the fund by an NGO run by a renowned public figure who was instrumental in creating a strong anti-corruption wave across the country.Recently, the CAPART has recommended the government to file nearly 159 FIRs against those NGOs which allegedly misused their funds as per their investigation. Though in the guideline of accreditation published by the ministry there are clear directives about how the NGOs should maintain their account, how they should conduct audits, and how the government should recover the grants from those NGOs who misused their funds, the court has identified it as insufficient. It is learned that the court has allowed the government to take action against those NGOs which has been identified by the CAPART as the defaulters. Nearly 703 NGOS is likely to face criminal charges and legal actions as they could not produce any satisfactory reply to the doubts raised by the CAPART regarding their fund usage. As per the expert’s opinion, the NGO’s fund usage, accreditation, guideline formulation and audit are the prime areas in which an urgent interference of concrete law is needed.
Vignesh
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