NEW DELHI: The
Justin Trudeau government in Canada has suspended a major Islamic charity and fined it $550,000 for sending $136,000 to a Pakistan-based Kashmiri organisation allegedly linked to the banned terror group
Hizbul Mujahideen.
The revelation, based on a government audit report, was published by one of Canada’s largest news outlets, Global News on October 1.
The
Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) auditors, in their report, said that Islamic Society of North America (INSA)-Canada had acted as a “conduit” for other organisations and its resources “may have directly or indirectly, been used to support the political efforts of
Jamaat-e-Islami and/or its armed wing Hizbul Mujahideen”.
The audit, conducted in 2011, covered the years 2007 to 2009. Though CRA conveyed the results of the audit to INSA-Canada in 2014, it acted against the group only last month.
The Canadian government has suspended the Mississauga-based charity for a year, says Global News. The Canadian government’s decision is significant in view of the diplomatically disastrous visit of Trudeau to India earlier this year.
He was snubbed by the Indian government, including Punjab CM
Amarinder Singh, over his appeasement of anti-India extremists, especially Khalistani separatists. The action against the Islamic charity seems to suggest Trudeau is doing an image makeover.
As per the government report, INSA-Canada gifted $90,000 to the Relief Organization for Kashmiri Muslims (ROKM) and $46,000 to Kashmiri Relief Fund of Canada (KRFC).
CRA has described ROKM as a charitable arm of Jamaat-e-Islami, a Pakistani group whose armed wing is Hizbul Mujahideen. KRFC, according to CRA, raises funds for ROKM, whose website claims it is based in Islamabad, Pakistan, and was founded in early 1990 “to provide aid to affected families in the state of Jammu & Kashmir and Occupied Kashmir”.
J & K Police expressed ignorance about ROKM. “We are not surprised about foreign funding to terror groups and stone-pelters in Kashmir but we have no idea about ROKM. Only the Union government can throw more light on this,” a senior officer told TOI.
FCRA officials in New Delhi were unavailable for comment.
