BJP chief Nadda targets Rahul Gandhi

News Desk: Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) chief Jagat Prakash Nadda hailed the Supreme Court verdict on the petition against PM CARES Fund and used it to attack Congress leader Rahul Gandhi.

“The verdict by Supreme Court on PM CARES is a resounding blow to the nefarious designs of Rahul Gandhi & his band of ‘rent a cause’ activists. It shows that the truth shines despite the ill intent and malicious efforts of the Congress party and its associates,” Nadda said on Twitter.

A three-judge bench of the apex court on Tuesday rejected a petition by an NGO seeking transfer of contributions in PM CARES Fund to National Disaster Response Fund (NDRF). The court held that individual and organisations are free to contribute to NDRF and there is no prohibition on the same.

“Rahul Gandhi’s rants have been repeatedly dismissed by the common man who has overwhelmingly contributed to PM CARES. With the highest court also pronouncing its verdict, will Rahul & his ‘rent a cause’ activist army mend their ways or embarrass themselves further?” Nadda tweeted.

“The Gandhi family treated PMNRF as it’s personal fiefdom for decades & brazenly transferred citizens’ hard-earned money from PMNRF to its family trusts.The country very well know that the orchestrated smear campaign against PM CARES is an attempt by the Congress to wash its sins,” he further said.

The NDRF is a statutory fund created under Section 46 of the Disaster Management Act, 2005. The NGO, Centre for Public Interest Litigation (CPIL), had claimed that PM CARES Fund was set up in violation of the legal mandate under the Disaster Management Act as per which any grant made by any person or institution for the purpose of disaster management should be compulsorily credited to NDRF.

The court held that individual and organisations are free to contribute to NDRF and there is no prohibition on the same. However, PM CARES is a separate fund established as a public charitable trust and no direction can be issued to transfer funds from that to NDRF, a three-judge bench headed by Justice Ashok Bhushan ruled.

While disposing of the petition, the court said that there is no need for fresh national disaster relief plan.