The Delhi High Court Friday advanced to December 10 the hearing on pleas to declare the PM CARES Fund a ‘State’ under the Constitution and a ‘public authority’ under the RTI Act to ensure transparency in its functioning.

  A bench of Chief Justice DN Patel and Justice Jyoti Singh allowed the applications for early hearing by the petitioner Samyak Gangwal and said, “Looking into the facts of the case, we allow the applications and prepone the date of hearing to December 10”.

The matter was last listed on November 18 when it was adjourned till December 20 after the bench did not assemble.  The petitioner has filed two petitioners seeking a direction to declare the PM CARES Fund a ‘State’ under the Constitution to ensure transparency in its functioning and also to declare it a ‘public authority’ under the RTI Act. The pleas are being heard together. The petitioner has said that the PM CARES Fund is a ‘State’ as it was formed by the Prime Minister on March 27, 2020, to extend assistance to the citizens of India in the wake of the public health emergency -- the ongoing Covid-19 Pandemic.

His counsel had told the court that if it is found that the PM CARES Fund is not ‘State’ under the Constitution, usage of the domain name ‘gov’, the Prime Minister’s photograph, state emblem, etc has to be stopped. However, an affidavit filed by an Under-Secretary at the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) who is discharging his functions in the PM Cares Trust on an honorary basis, had said the PM CARES Fund is not a government fund as donations to it do not go to the Consolidated Fund of India and no third party information can be parted with irrespective of its status under the Constitution and the RTI Act.

It had said the trust functions with transparency and its funds are audited by an  chartered accountant.