Compliance with FATF laws: Operational activities of 10 NPOs shut down in Punjab

LAHORE: The Social Welfare and Bait-ul-Maal (SW&BM) Punjab has got registered first information reports (FIRs) and shut down operational activities of 10 non-profit organisations (NPOs) working across Punjab without seeking prior mandatory no-objection certificate (NOC) from the Punjab Counter-Terrorism Department (CTD).

Sources privy to the development told Business Recorder that the premier intelligence agency, Punjab Counter-Terrorism Department and Special Branch Punjab, without taking on board the SW&BM department, recently prepared a list of NPOs working in Punjab which do not meet the criteria laid down under the recently-enacted FATF laws and shared it with the Punjab Home Department for taking further necessary actions.

According to the list obtained by Business Recorder, the home department earlier this month had recommended action against 10 NPOs which include Abad Welfare Foundation, Jibran Khalid Memorial Welfare Foundation, Inqalab Welfare Foundation, Raza-e-Elahi Foundation, Gilani Welfare Foundation, The Way of Salvation, Helping Hands Foundation, Ibrahim Education Foundation, Iqbal Foundation and Rah-e-Khidmat Foundation.

“Of them, four NPOs - Abad Welfare Foundation, Jibran Khalid Memorial Welfare Foundation, Inqalab Welfare Foundation and Raza-e-Elahi Foundation - were (illegally) working in Lahore while the others in different districts of Punjab without obtaining mandatory NOC from the CTD,” the sources said. They added that these four NPOs though failed to provide required NOC or any justification for running their operations, but they had applied for registration with the SW&BM Punjab. However, the sources said the SW&BM after raising some objections during verification of the documents had asked the NPOs to provide additional information with clarity but that was yet to be submitted.

The sources further revealed that the other six NPOs neither obtained NOCs from the CTD nor they had applied for the registration with the SW&BM Punjab.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2020