Zakir Naik donation row: Congress hits out at Modi government

New Delhi: Congress on Saturday hit out at the Modi government, accusing it of hatching a "venal conspiracy of muckraking" to "slander, malign and defame" the party over Rs 50 lakh donation received by the Rajiv Gandhi Charitable Trust from controversial preacher Zakir Naik's NGO. It said the money was returned when the facts came to light about the organization. "Modi government is running its usual diabolical agenda to slander, malign and defame through Goebbelsian lies meted out by Home Ministry in shape of mischievous and selective news plants. "To top this venal conspiracy of muckraking, Modi government and BJP fielded Union Cabinet Minister, Ravi Shankar Prasad," party's chief spokesman Randeep Surjewala said in a statement. He said what is utterly shocking is the fact that a Union Cabinet Minister, who has sworn by the Constitution, is asking questions about documents and facts, which are "in possession of the government and are being leaked by them mischievously." "Truth is that Rajiv Gandhi Charitable Trust (RGCT) received a donation in conformity with law and norms and same was returned by the Trust out of its volition in view of the controversy surrounding Islamic Research Foundation/Zakir Naik.," he said. Targeting the Modi government, he said it must stop its "web of vengeful deceit and lies." "Despite the extremities of vindictive malintent, they will never be able to cloud the truth", Surjewala said. Talking to reporters, party spokesman Abhishek Singhvi spoke on similar lines and targeted the government and BJP of sensationalizing matters "without showing the least degree of responsibility". In the statement, Surjewala said "incontrovertible facts" in the case were that in 2011, the Rajiv Gandhi Charitable Trust received "one single unsolicited stray donation of Rs 50 lakh" from Islamic Research Foundation which was directly deposited in the RGCT account by IRF through cheque. The donation was followed up by IRF with a donation letter informing the RGCT that the money was to be used for its "general fund" and PAN card details were enclosed in accordance with law. "IRF did not inform RGCT that this donation was in any way connected to FCRA," he said. In early July, 2016, when the IRF/Zakir Naik controversy became public, RGCT took a decision and refunded this money to IRF. RGCT also took a decision that after the refund of this "single stray donation", it will have no engagement of any type with IRF, Surjewala said. https://twitter.com/rssurjewala/status/774585898318962689 About the Rajiv Gandhi Foundation, he said, it is a "distinct, separate, unallied and independent legal entity" (independent from RGCT) and has never had any donation/funds from IRF and has no connection whatsoever with the televangelist's foundation. Singhvi accused the government and the BJP of launching a "virulent, baseless" propaganda against the Congress and it showed the "mental bankruptcy" of the ruling dispensation. Taking a dig at the BJP, he wondered as to how Congress could be an "astrologer" knowing about the controversial past of the IRF when the donation was accepted. He also wondered as to why the Modi government did not ban the IRF since coming to power two years back.