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The notices were issued on Tuesday by a divisional bench comprising Justice Sunil Shukre and Justice Anil Killor on the PIL filed by lawyer Arvind Waghmare in his capacity as a "citizen of India and a donor to the fund."
The Bombay High Court's Nagpur Bench issued notices to the Union of India via the principal secretaries of the Ministries of Finance, Home and Defense in their capacity as ex-officio members of the PM CARES fund, on a PIL by a lawyer based in Nagpur requesting, among other prayers, information of the funds raised to date to counter the Covid-19 pandemic and its audit by the Comptroller and Auditor General of India.
The notices were issued on Tuesday by a divisional bench comprising Justice Sunil Shukre and Justice Anil Killor on the PIL filed by lawyer Arvind Waghmare in his capacity as a "Indian citizen and a fund donor."Rejecting India's Additional Solicitor General Anil Singh 's argument that the PIL should be dismissed in the light of the Supreme Court having already dismissed two petitions on the matter earlier, the bench said the issues raised in the PIL of Nagpur lawyers were different and it issued notices accordingly.
The court has given the respondents two weeks to reply. The petitioner sought 'appropriate directions for compulsory auditing of the PM CARES Fund,' which he said was a public charitable trust,' by the Comptroller and Auditor General of India , rather than independent auditors, as decided by the fund's board of trustees in order to honor and respect the trustworthiness of the country's top institute created by the Indian Constitution.'
"And the respondents are also directed to appoint / nominate three other trustees on the public trust immediately," the petitioner said. He also called for at least two of those trustees to be appointed by members of opposition parties in the Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha to be properly checked and balanced, and also to strengthen the trust of general public and for accountability about the high-profile fund.
The petitioner has sought immediately making public ‘ the entire funds earned as on date, whether domestically or from overseas i.e. from NRIs and foreign nationals and/or organisation, on the official websites of the fund in order to strengthen trust and confidence of the general public,Who gave the fund their hard-earned money, and also gave directions for updating the donations received and the expenditure incurred from that account ..".
Waghmare countered the argument of the Additional Solicitor General — that the PIL was fit to be dismissed as the SC had already resolved the matter by dismissing two earlier petitions —Saying that the said petitions sought disbandment of the fund as India's Consolidated Fund served the same purpose. The earlier petitions also called the fund "unconstitutional" and demanded a sample, the petitioner former, adding that his prayer was entirely different.
The bench acknowledged his point, and sent the respondents notices.
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