Mary Kom’s NGO, Rajiv trust probed

New Delhi, March 20

The government today informed the Lok Sabha that the Home Ministry had been looking into the accounts of 42 NGOs to find whether they allegedly violated any provisions of the Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Act 2010.

Prominent among the NGOs under lens are those set up by Olympic medallist and Rajya Sabha MP Mary Kom, Rajiv Gandhi Charitable Trust and NASSCOM, the apex body for India’s IT industry. Union Minister of State for Home Kiren Rijiju said in the House that 21 NGOs, including Mary Kom Regional Boxing Foundation, Rajiv Gandhi Charitable Trust, Delhi, Asianet New Charitable Trust, Kerala, Amnesty International (India) Foundation, were served with a standard questionnaire.

In a written reply, the Minister said audit and inspection had been completed in case of 21 other NGOs, including Shakti Sustainable Energy Foundation, Delhi, NASSCOM, Delhi and Public Health Foundation of India.

Mary Kom’s NGO was registered and established as a charitable trust in 2006. It was a pioneering initiative by 2012 London Olympics Bronze medallist and Padma Bhushan awardee and nominated Rajya Sabha MP MC Mary Kom and her husband K Onler with the aim to promote boxing amongst underprivileged youth in Manipur and other parts of North-East.

The Rajiv Gandhi Charitable Trust (RGCT) was established in 2002 to address the development needs of the underprivileged people, especially the rural poor. It is the largest social mobilisation programme for women’s empowerment in Uttar Pradesh with its work impacting 42 districts. NASSCOM, a not-for-profit industry association, is the apex body for the $154 billion Indian IT BPM industry. The Public Health Foundation of India is a public-private initiative that has collaboratively evolved through consultations with multiple constituencies, including Indian and international academia. — TNS