TheSite

By Staff Reporter, The Site

Responding to the raids, conducted by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) at its offices, the Human Welfare Foundation (HWF) has said all its activities are being conducted within the legal framework and within the purview of the Constitution of the country.

"Foundation’s activities are totally transparent and its records are properly audited and submitted to the Income Tax department and Charity Commissioner annually," a statement by HRF general secretary T Arif Ali said. He said that the foundation is ready to help NIA and all government agencies in investigation.

The statement came after more than 15 sleuths of NIA conducted raids at the offices of the HWF at Abul Fazal Enclave in New Delhi at around 7.30 am on Thursday.

Giving details about seizures, Ali said that the sleuths took away some files, documents, laptops and computers of the account department, chief executive officer and public relations department of the foundation. Foundation’s treasurer Mohammad Jafar and acting chief executive officer Noufal P K were detained for interrogation.

He said that the foundation’s core areas of activity are education, health, employment, developing water sources like installation of tubewells, digging of wells, Orphan care, relief and rehabilitation works since the last 12 years throughout the length and breadth of the country.

"HWF is an umbrella body under which several registered NGOs are working in the country. The focus areas of the Foundation were poverty-stricken areas in the North and Northeast region of the country where a large number of people were living below the poverty line. It's also working for women empowerment  through self-help groups and livelihood projects," he said adding that HWF is successfully running many hospitals, schools and dispensaries in different parts of the country.

"Foundation’s services had been appreciated by many senior government officers and departments and many political leaders had also inaugurated or attended its developmental programmes and activities. The foundation’s activities are totally transparent and its records are properly audited and submitted to the Income Tax department and Charity Commissioner annually," he explained.

The National Investigation Agency (NIA) on Thursday continued its searches in a ‘terror funding’ case at nine locations in Jammu and Kashmir and Delhi. NIA also raided the properties related to Zafarul Islam Khan. Various Muslim organisations including Social Democratic Party, All India Majlis-e-Ittehad-ul-Muslimeen (AIMIM) and Jamaat-e-Islami Hind (JIH) have condemned the raids.

JIH, in a press statement said that many news channels, especially the Republic TV, have projected that HWF is a part of the Jamaat-e-Islami Hind. "But, the fact is that the HWF is a separate legal entity and there is no legal subordination or subsidiary ship of the JIH over the HWF," it said.