Muslims offer 'Zakat' (giving alms to poor during the festive [Ramadhan & Zil-Hajj] month for their earnings) across the globe to the needy and poor through various organizations and charities. India News Network (INN) investigates the depth of India's wild spreading multi-crore 'Zakat' scam in every nook and corner of Indian states. The use and misuse of the funds, the claim of funds for useful and useless purpose. INN delves the ignorance of calculating and audit authorities.
Rich Muslims, especially the Indian expatriates have donated over Rs 500 crore (conservative estimate) in the last two decades. The administrator of one well-known charitable institution, in a recently published interview, has confirmed receiving Zakat of nearly Rs 100 crore (since 1993) which was spent on education of poor Muslims. There are innumerable institutions who have been collecting crores of rupees from the NRIs and other rich Muslims towards Zakat and other donations.
The Big Question: What is the output? The number of students who passed out of these institutions and what are they doing now? There must be at least 5,000 Professionals like doctors, engineers or other post-graduates and at least 2,000 Muftis and other religious scholars. This amount should have brought economic revolution in the lives of at least 1,000 families.
Where are those families and other beneficiaries?
Those who donated their hard-earned money must ask these questions to the institutions with whom they have been depositing their donations every year. They must also check the ownership details of properties purchased by those institutions and their administrators.
Wake up now!!!
INN did not refer to any specific institution and was careful about naming anyone. INN fully agree that not all institutions are fake. You have mentioned about some cases wherein poor Muslims have become professionals. But can you please share the exact numbers. Only then, we can analyse whether we are able to get the desired output from the crore of rupees being spent on the welfare of poor Muslims.
INN won't name it, but most of us know that a well-known charitable institution, has published huge advertisements (condolence) in leading newspapers, when former Chief Minister YSR passed away. The advertising cost of several lakh rupees was not paid by individuals, but it went from the Zakat amount. The administrator of a top Madarsas purchased properties worth several crores on his and his family's name from the Zakat and donations that he collected for the institution. These are just a few instances. One institution has wasted lakhs of rupees in "transportation" of Iftari while crores were spent on distribution of 250 gm each of Qurbani Meat among "beneficiaries".
The institutions are simply fooling the donors with corporate-style brochures, AV presentations, media advertisements and inflated statistics.Those giving donations are also responsible for these scam. They never cross-checked how their money was being utilised. It is high time that we insist all institutions to publish their balance sheets and complete details of beneficiaries.
Especially the donors, must ask the balance sheets of institutions receiving funds. Many institutions have inflated figures of number of students. At one side, they are collecting donations and Zakat from the rich Muslims and on the other, they are using the numbers to enjoy benefits from government schemes like Sarva Sikha Abhiyaan, Mid-Day Meal Scheme and others. In fact, INN can present a list of over a dozen big institutions/individuals involved in such frauds.
INN will run this 'tip of iceberg' story in three series with some facts and figures, trying to do the 'real expose' on this multi-crore scam. INN doesn't have any wrong intentions to stop this noble practice to serve the poor by many genuine individuals and organizations.
CONTINUED STORY: Organisations Turn Zakat Into Multi-Crore Industry - 1
