Nepali-Canadian Group Files CRA Complaint Against Charity Which Raised Funds For 2015 Earthquake

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Re: Information on Petition to CRA in response to misuse of Nepal Earthquake Funds by a local charity in BC. 

Dear Editor,

We, the Citizens against the Abuse of Nepal Earthquake Funds (CAANEF), a community-based advocacy group in BC, would like to bring to your attention that we have submitted a petition to Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) to investigate the possible violations of charity laws and misuse of funds by a local charity, Nepal Heritage Charity Foundation (NHCF), with the signatures of 206 Canadian taxpayers and donors.

In the aftermath of 2015 earthquakes that took over 9,000 lives and left over 3.5 million homeless in Nepal, there was an outpouring of support from Canadians of all walks of life, particularly from the Punjabi community in Surrey, BC.  Within days, millions of dollars were raised. NHCF alone raised over $200,000 for immediate relief works; but

Sadly, NHCF spent only about $14,000 for providing immediate relief. Even worse, out of $14,000 spent, a significant amount was siphoned to Directors’ villages, bypassing many other villages devastated by the quakes. In response there was a huge public outcry on Nepal Cultural Society of BC’s–the Nepali community group’s– google forum. The founding president of the charity resigned and so did the secretary alleging that the remaining board and the Charity has strayed away from its core objectives.

Thank you.

On behalf of CAANEF

(Ratna K. Shrestha, Khem Dahal, Binod Shrestha, Bina Shrestha, Eva Pradhan and Robert Penner)

https://www.facebook.com/Nepal.CAANEF/