The office of Charity Commissioner, Pune, has tendered an apology to social activist Anna Hazare and withdrew a 'showcause' notice served on him for not submitting the audit report of 'Hind Swaraj Trust' headed by him for two years between 2005 and 2007.
In a letter addressed to Hazare, it said the notice was "wrongly issued" to him by the office as a result of a clerical error responsible for non-entry of the trust accounts submitted to the Charity Commissioner in respect of the period from April 1, 2005 to March 31, 2007.
Milind Pawar, lawyer for Hazare had earlier accused the Charity Commissioner's office of a "design to defame" the anti-corruption crusader by issuing a "false notice" to him despite proper submission of the trust accounts for the period under reference.
"A mere apology is not enough and we are contemplating a legal course of action against the Charity Commissioner's office," Pawar said today.
