Great cry and little wool. This phrasal verb rightfully defines a self-proclaimed activist Rana Ayyub. Rana had drawn fire in the past over her shoddy, anti-India journalism and propaganda. And now, she has come under the scanner of the Enforcement Directorate for an alleged charity fund scandal. Thus, her career as a contributing writer in the global opinion section of The Washington Post also seems to be in danger.
Rana Ayyub accused of Money laundering
Rana reportedly raised crores of Rupees under the garb of donations which she used for personal expenses. Ayyub allegedly began three campaigns – ‘Funds for slum dwellers and farmers’, ‘Relief work for Assam, Bihar and Maharashtra’ and ‘Help for covid-19 impacted people in India.’ The first two were launched in 2020, whereas the last one was launched in 2021. She reportedly received money via the crowdfunding portal ‘Ketto.org’ and collected a huge amount of money.
However, the charity fund meant to help the people of India was used by her to help her family instead.
Thus, on Thursday, the Enforcement Directorate attached ₹1.77 crores belonging to the journalist for alleged money laundering. She has also been accused of receiving foreign donations without any approval under FCRA (foreign contribution regulation act). Notably, it is mandatory to receive any funding from abroad.
The agency had initiated a probe against Ayyub last year based on an FIR filed by the Uttar Pradesh Police in September. In the complaint to the UP police, it was alleged that Rana Ayyub had illegally acquired public money through relief measure campaigns on Ketto.
As per the central probe agency, “Funds totalling Rs 2,69,44,680 were raised on Ketto by Rana Ayyub. These funds were withdrawn in the bank accounts of her sister and father.”
Read more: Barkha Dutt and Rana Ayyub defame India globally
“Out of this amount, Rs 72,01,786 was withdrawn in her own bank account, Rs 37,15,072 was withdrawn in her sister Iffat Shaikh’s account, and Rs 1,60,27,822 was withdrawn in her father Mohd Ayyub Waquif’s bank account,” it added.
The ED also reported that its probe “makes it abundantly clear that the funds were raised in the name of charity in a completely pre-planned and systematic manner, and the funds were not utilised completely for the purpose of which the funds were raised”.
“Instead of utilising the funds for the relief work, Rana Ayyub parked some of the funds by opening a separate current bank account,” it said.
Witnessing the above statements and facts, it is safe to say that Rana Ayyub turned out to be a woman with no ethics. A woman who claimed to be an activist used others’ money to benefit herself. This comes as a huge shame for the whole liberal cabal. Needless to say, it would also have a negative impact on the image of The Washington Post where Rana is currently working. Since every action has a repercussion, Rana needs to be thrown out of the media organisation.