Received Rs 20 lakh for relief work in Andaman: RGF

The Rajiv Gandhi Foundation (RGF) has said that it received "a modest amount" of Rs 20 lakh from the Prime Minister''s National Relief Fund (PMNRF) for relief work in Andaman and Nicobar Islands following the 2004 tsunami.

In a statement, the RGF clarified about the amount it received from PMNRF after the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) attacked the Congress over receiving public money.

The statement issued chief spokesperson of Congress, Randeep Singh Surjewala, on behalf of RGF, said: "Pursuant to the unprecedented tsunami in the last week of 2004, RGF received a modest amount of Rs 20 lakh from the Prime Minister''s National Relief Fund in the Financial Year 2005 which was duly utilised to undertake relief activities in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands."

The statement said that this grant was used for the purposes specified.

"RGF accounts were duly audited and statutory returns were filed under Foreign Contributions Regulation Act (FCRA) to the Government of India.

This grant has been duly reflected in all filings to the income tax and the Home Ministry and no authority has ever found any wrongdoing of any nature," the statement said.

"Diversion, disinformation and distraction" are the diabolical hallmarks of the BJP and Narendra Modi government when exposed and caught lying on issues of national security and territorial integrity, alleged Surjewala.

The Congress leader said that the facts in the public domain clearly establish that Prime Minister Narendra Modi has deliberately misled the nation on the issue of Chinese transgressions and "the brazen occupation of our territory".