Today (9 April 2024), the Charity Commission has concluded its statutory inquiry Charr Yarr Welfare Foundation Limited.
The charity was set up to promote education and the relief of poverty. It also provides funds to a non-profit organisation registered in Pakistan.
In May 2020, the Commission opened an inquiry into the charity after it identified serious concerns about its governance and financial management.
The inquiry was opened following a period of regulatory engagement with the charity's then trustees, which included issuing the trustees with an Action Plan and an Official Warning which were not fully complied with.
During the inquiry, investigators became aware of statements made by one of the charity's trustees at the time, Mr Z Mashadi, in videos published online
In these videos, Mr Z Mashadi was seen inciting religious violence, advocating the murder of blasphemers and denigrating specific Islamic faiths. The Commission considered these statements to be a consistent pattern of behaviour which met the government's 2011 definition of extremism. This, in part, led to the Commission taking regulatory action to disqualify Mr Z Mashadi from his position as a trustee of the charity.
The inquiry also found financial mismanagement, including that:
- former trustees were unable to explain why £1,400 of the charity's funds had been transferred to one of the former trustees, Mr Z Mashadi. As a result of the inquiry, the funds were repaid to the charity.
- former trustees were found to have accepted large donations and interest free loans without conducting any due diligence or maintaining records
- former trustees failed to implement sufficient controls in respect of their management of the charity's finances, including using personal bank accounts and cash couriering to transfer the charity's funds to the non-profit organisation in Pakistan
The Commission used its powers to disqualify all three former trustees, Mr Z Mashadi, Mrs M Mosvi and Mr A Mashadi for 5 years, 2.5 years and 2.5 years respectively.
Joshua Farbridge, Head of Compliance Visits and Inspections at the Commission, said:
Mr Z Mashadi's conduct made him entirely unfit to act as a trustee for a charity.
We are very clear that where we uncover wrongdoing that harms an individual charity and diminishes the reputation of charity, we will be robust and tenacious in using our powers to secure the right outcomes to protect beneficiaries, charitable resources, staff, and donors.
Encouragingly, the current trustees of the Charr Yarr Welfare Foundation have shown a willingness to take onboard regulatory advice and guidance provided by the Commission, and we continue to engage with them as is necessary.
The full inquiry report can be read here.
