The CBI has arrested 14 accused persons, including six public servants and has recovered cash of Rs 3.21 crore, several incriminating documents and mobile phones during countrywide searches at the premises of accused at around 40 locations including in Delhi, Haryana, Rajasthan, Jharkhand, Himachal Pradesh, Telangana, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Assam and Manipur.
A case was registered on Tuesday against 36 accused including seven public servants of FCRA Division of the Union Home Ministry National Informatics Centre (NIC) and middlemen besides representatives of various NGOs. They were booked on the allegations that some officials of FCRA Division, in conspiracy with the promoters/ representatives of different NGOs, middlemen, were indulging in corrupt activities for getting backdoor FCRA registration/ renewal to NGOs illegally with an object to continue receiving donations despite not fulfilling the prescribed norms, the CBI said in a statement.
“It was further alleged that some public servants were impersonating themselves as officers posted in FCRA Division and were indulging in said practices and obtaining bribe from NGOs for facilitating them for their registration/ renewal of registration under FCRA and for other FCRA related works,” it said.
During investigation, two accused were caught while delivering and accepting the bribe amount of Rs 4 lakh on behalf of a Senior Accountant of MHA, New Delhi. It was alleged that the delivery of bribe was done through a hawala operator and a close associate of said public servant, at Avadi (Tamil Nadu), the agency said.
The arrested accused are being produced before the Competent Court and further investigation is continuing.
The arrested public servants are Parmod Kumar Bhasin, Senior Accountant, Ministry of Home Affairs, who was earlier posted in FCRA Division; Alok Ranjan, Senior AO, PAO, MHA, earlier worked in FCRA Division (MHA), Raj Kumar, Accountant, FCRA; Md. Saheed Khan, Assistant Director, FCRA, Delhi; Md. Ghazanfar Ali, officer of MHA, earlier posted in FCRA Division and Tushar Kanti Roy, FCRA official.
The arrested private persons Pawan Kumar Sharma alias Pareek Bhai, Ramanand Pareek, hawala operator located at Chennai (Tamil Nadu), Robin Devadass, Gandhi Nagar, Chennai (NGO-The Social Project, Keezandurai Road, Nagavedu Village, Nemili TK, Vellore (Tamil Nadu), Ravi Shankar Ambastha of Rohini, Delhi, Manoj Kumar of Secunderabad, Hyderabad (Telangana), Santosh Kumar Prasad , Director of consultancy firm Shaurya Business Solutions Private Limited, Dayanand Colony, Lajpat Nagar–IV, New Delhi and another office at CWG. Village, Akshardham, New Delhi, Amita Chandra, Director of s Shaurya Business Solutions Private Limited, Vageesh, Chartered Accountant, working in a hospital on behalf of Ganga Orthopaedic Research & Education Foundation (GOREF), PN Pudur, Coimbatore.
The CBI action against FCRA division and NGO representatives came following inputs with the Union Home Ministry suggesting at least three networks, working closely with government officials, were charging “speed money” and “problem-resolution fees” to expedite the FCRA clearance to the NGOs in order to make them eligible to get foreign donations.
In a countrywide crackdown on Tuesday, the CBI searched 40 locations and apprehended around 14 people, including home ministry officials, NGO representatives and alleged middlemen, for their suspected role in the racket.
In a communication to the CBI on March 29, Union Home Secretary Ajay Bhalla mentioned that at least three FCRA clearance networks were working in close collaboration with some government officials.
The three networks, having links with the government officials, were charging “speed money” and “problems resolution fees” to expedite the FCRA clearance to the NGOs and resolve issues related to the application process for new registrations and renewals, officials said.
In his letter, the Union Home Secretary also conveyed to the CBI Director Subodh Kumar Jaiswal the government's approval for a thorough investigation into the alleged fraud and requested him to take necessary action.
Bhalla sent the letter to the CBI chief after Union Home Minister Amit Shah was briefed about the development and he ordered a thorough probe into the FCRA syndicate comprising officials of the FCRA Division under the Home Ministry, NGO representatives and middlemen.During its operation, the CBI found that several officials were allegedly involved in exchanging bribes for facilitating clearances to the NGOs in alleged violation of Foreign Contribution Regulation Act (FCRA) rules, according to the CBI.