The Rajiv Gandhi Foundation and Rajiv Gandhi Charitable Trust, two NGOs run by Congresswoman Sonia Gandhi, had their licenses under the Foreign Contribution Regulation Act (FCRA) revoked by the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) on October 22 due to alleged violations of the law.
A non-governmental organization connected to the Gandhi family is the Rajiv Gandhi Foundation.
Sources claim that MHA established a committee in July 2020, and based on the committee’s findings, MHA decided to dissolve the foundation. Investigators looked into allegations of document manipulation during tax return filing, financial mismanagement, and money laundering while receiving payments from other nations, notably China.
The corresponding office holders of the NGOs have received a notice advising them of the termination of the FCRA license.
RGF’s trustees also include former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, former Finance Minister P Chidambaram, and lawmakers Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra. Former Congress President Sonia Gandhi serves as the organization’s head.
RGF, founded in 1991, worked from that year until 2009 on a variety of important subjects, such as health, science, technology, women and children, disability support, etc. According to the company’s website, it also operated in the education industry.
Rahul Gandhi, Ashok Ganguly, Bansi Mehta, and Deep Joshi are the RGCT’s trustees. It was founded in 2002 to address the country’s underprivileged citizens’ development needs, particularly those of the rural poor.
According to the RGCT website, it now works in the most underdeveloped areas of Uttar Pradesh and Haryana through two development projects: the Rajiv Gandhi Mahila Vikas Pariyojana (RGMVP) and the Indira Gandhi Eye Hospital and Research Centre (IGEHRC).
The Jawahar Bhawan, on Rajendra Prasad Road, close to the Parliament complex in New Delhi, houses both the RGF and the RGCT.
After the MHA established an inter-ministerial committee led by an Enforcement Directorate (ED) officer to look into alleged violations of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), the Income Tax Act, and the FCRA, the NGOs came under scrutiny in July 2020.
The Indira Gandhi Memorial Trust was another entity under investigation. However, there hasn’t been any action done yet against the third organization.
News Mania Desk
