Why is there no huge fuss in the media now that the UK Charitable Commission has totally absolved Sewa International and HSS on the charges of terrorism leveled against them very loudly by a group called Awaaz? The proper treatment for shoot-and-scoot con artists like Awaaz (as seen below, they are blood brothers of the motley crew that attacked IDRF as well) would be to sue their pants off for libel like the Jewish Anti Defamation League does.
Thanks to a friend.
http://www.charity-commission.gov.uk/investigations/inquiryreports/hss.asp
Quote:
Charity Commission for England and Wales
Hindu Swayamsevak Sangh
Registered Charity No. 267309
Introduction
1. This report is a statement of the results of an Inquiry conducted under Section 8 of the Charities Act 1993.
2. Hindu Swayamsevak Sangh ('the Charity') was registered as a charity on 29 April 1974. The object of the Charity is to advance the Hindu religion and to educate the public in the Hindu ideals and way of life. The Charity is based in Leicester.
3. Income for the Charity for the financial year ending 31 March 2002 was £1,267,570. This includes £909,112 received by Sewa International.
Background
4. The Charity had set up a project arm in 1991 known as Sewa International (UK). The purpose of the project arm was to help aged, sick, poor and distressed persons.
5. On 26 January 2001 a devastating earthquake struck the state of Gujarat, India resulting in many thousands of people being killed and millions being made homeless.
6. Within a few days the Charity had launched the Gujarat Earthquake Appeal Fund (\'the appeal\') through Sewa International to help those suffering and to aid the rebuilding of the villages. A number of prominent people became patrons of the appeal.
Issues
7. Following concerns expressed over the administration and expenditure of the appeal, an Inquiry was opened on 4 October 2002. The purpose of the Inquiry was to establish whether the funds raised had been properly applied in accordance with the terms of the appeal.
8. During the course of the Inquiry it was also alleged that the Charity had not been clearly identified on some of the appeal literature. It was suggested that the identity of the charity was important because of the alleged links between the Charity and the Hindu Nationalist Organisation Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (\'RSS\').
Findings
9. Sewa International launched the appeal in January 2001 following the earthquake in Gujarat. Primary accounting records supplied by the Charity show that £2,330,000 was banked in the name of the appeal.
10. The Charity produced evidence that all the funds raised as a result of the appeal had been sent to an established Indian non-governmental organisation known as Sewa Bharati. This organisation would utilise the funds towards the rebuilding of six villages in Gujarat.
11. The Charity produced a detailed breakdown of the application of funds by Sewa International (UK) in India. The funds were utilised towards the following projects:
* £1,062,000 for the reconstruction of six villages
* £123,352 for schools project 1
* £1,282,352 for schools project 2
* £118,887 for other projects
These amounts show that Sewa International (UK) contributed 74% of the total project costs of £3,507,914.
12. The Commission is satisfied that the trustees have taken sufficient steps to ensure funds have been applied in accordance with the appeal. In January 2004, Sewa International (UK) arranged for a delegation of 30 people from major donors to visit Gujarat to view the completed rehabilitation projects. The delegates produced a report which confirms they were satisfied that the funds had been spent in accordance with the Gujarat appeal.
13. Formal audited Accounts for the total income and expenditure of Sewa Bharati were not received.
(comment : er.... how about for AWAAZ or ActionAID? )
14. The Charity advised the Commission in 1991 that Sewa International had been set up as a project arm of the Charity and the Commission agreed that the trustees of the Charity had the power to do this. Some of the appeal literature and the Sewa International (UK) website did not clearly identify the link with the Charity. On some items the Charity\'s registered number was quoted, but the name was not.
15. During the Inquiry, we have been asked to consider the alleged links between the Charity and RSS. The trustees stated that the Charity has no formal organisational links with RSS and that there is only an ideological commonality between the two organisations. Therefore, owing to the Commission being satisfied that the funds have been properly expended it was not necessary to consider any alleged links during this Inquiry.
Outcome of the Inquiry
16. The Commission was unable to establish for itself how the funds were utilised as its request for visas to visit India to undertake an inspection visit were refused by the Indian government.
17. The Charity has been advised that if they wish to use the name Sewa International, all promotional material must state clearly that Sewa International (UK) is a project arm of the Charity.
Wider Lessons
18. Charities working internationally, like all charities, must keep accounting records that show and explain all transactions and are sufficient to ensure that statutory Accounts can be prepared. In particular the accounting records must provide a record of assets and liabilities and details of the nature of all receipts and payments. For further information on charities working internationally see: www.charitycommission.gov.uk
19. Where a charity applies funds internationally it is under a duty to take sufficient steps to ensure the funds are applied in accordance with the appeal. Ideally a charity should require the organisation undertaking the charitable relief work to supply a copy of its audited Accounts.
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Last updated:3 February 2005
******************************
From xxxxxxx
To: Rebecca.Drake@charitycommissio
Cc: xxxxxxx
Subject: From someone who investigated another terror attack by the Comrades of AWAAZ
Date: Sun, 6 Feb 2005
February 6, 2005
Ms. Rebecca Drake
Charity Commission for England and Wales
Rebecca.Drake@charitycommissio
Re: The Commission’s Report on the Hindu Swayam Sevak Sangh
http://www.charity-commission
Dear Ms. Drake:
I read the subject report with interest, being guided there by the latest propaganda – a Press Release dated February 3 from “AWAAZ - South Asia Watch”, the gang that launched the hate campaign against HSS and Sewa International.
I thank the Commission for seeing the obvious: that the charges are utterly baseless. I am distressed, however, that the Commission did not convey the real Wider Lesson to the public. They failed to convey that dishonest noise-making and propaganda from Communist Comrades and terrorists, does not reflect badly on the victims of their attacks.
If AWAAZ were to publish tomorrow another of their notorious “Meticulously Researched Reports” declaring that Ms. Drake and the Lords of the Charity Commission for England and Wales are all child-molesters and serial killers, I don’t think it is enough to say, 2 years later: “The UK didn’t give us a visa to go stir up trouble in Brixton. Ms. Drake and the Commission should publish lists of all their friends and activities”. The right conclusion is: “The AWAAZ Report was utterly baseless, malicious, and its authors are shown to be knaves of the most contemptible sort, because they took money from enemies of democracy to attack orphans, leprosy patients, and others in dire need, while targeting honest people who are going about their work”.
I note that the Commission’s work started in October 2002. Coincidence? In November 2002, I was part of a citizen team who investigated very similar charges in another of these “Meticulously Researched Reports” by the same general gang against the US-based India Development and Relief Fund (IDRF). In the US, this gang called themselves The Campaign to Stop Funding Hate (TCTSFH), now mutated into “CSFH”. In the UK they are more honest in naming themselves “AWAAZ” which means “noise” in Hindi. Very apt indeed.
Our investigation went much deeper, and I personally spent many, many hours on the internet doing minute searches of all activities of the 185-plus grassroots organizations which had received IDRF funds. Our team did not seek to physically travel to India for the purpose either. We exercised due diligence using the internet, telephone, newspapers, and all other media, by talking at length to the parties involved, and through several open internet discussions. I ran up over $500 in personal telephone bills. We published our report on the internet, and as a book. You can read all about it, and download our reports, through this site:
For your convenience, I attach the Synopsis of our book below, and the Executive Summary of our report to this email message.
Incidentally, I am not “HSS”, “RSS”, or anything else, nor do I have even
“ideological affinity” with these or any other organization. I just happen to have donated as much money as we could spare, through IDRF to help educate children of Indian soldiers and policemen who have died trying to keep the terrorists from overrunning our democracies. I continue to do so today. I do detest liars, and that may explain why I spend a Sunday morning writing this to refute the vicious propaganda from Communist terrorists.
I do hope that the UK Charities Commission in future does not allow itself to be used as a wet rag by the terrorists to beat up on honest organizations that help the most desperately needy people. If you spend any time browsing “Organizations Funded by IDRF - Sabrang/FOIL claims vs. Reality” http://www.geocities.com
you will see what I mean.
Best regards
****** **********
Co-author, "A Factual Response to the Hate Attack on IDRF" March 2003.
http://www.geocities.com
Attachments:
1. Letter with synopsis of the book "A Factual Response to the Hate Attack on the India Development and Relief Fund".
2. Executive summary, Friends of India Report
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