The govt ordered a CBI probe into social activist Teesta Setalvad funds case
Social activistTeesta Setalvad. (Photo: PTI/File)
New Delhi: The government on Friday ordered a CBI probe into social activist Teesta Setalvad run NGO, Sabrang Communication and Publishing Pvt Limited (SCPPL) for accepting and diverting funds from the Ford Foundation allegedly in violation of rules and froze a bank account of the firm. In an order issued Friday, the MHA said that the bank account may be seized and no further credit and withdrawal of foreign contribution in the bank account will be allowed without the permission of the ministry.
Sources said SCPPL was allegedly in violation of rules of Foreign Contributions Regulation Act (FCRA) in accepting a donation of Rs 2.9 lakh dollars from Ford Foundation without getting clearance of the home ministry.
According to the rules, an organisation or a private firm can accept donations from overseas only after it is registered under FCRA. This donation was, therefore, a “serious violation” of FCRA provisions which mandate funding from a foreign source to only those recipients who have FCRA registration, the sources said.
The sources said a bank account of the firm located in Juhu, Mumbai, has been frozen at the instruction of the home ministry. It may be recalled that the Gujarat government had asked the home ministry to take action against Ford Foundation.
( Source : deccan chronicle )
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