Published by : Ankit Thakkar
Snow White Publications Pvt. Ltd.,
Mumbai
Price: Rs. 2895/-
Dr. K. Veeramani
The eighteenth edition of doyen S. Rajaratnam’s book ‘Law and Procedure on Charitable Trusts and Religious Institutions, published by Snow white publications Pvt. Ltd., now adorns the stands of leading book stores. The principal author S. Rajaratnam is a prolific writer and erudite scholar whose achievements are numerous. He has churned out several books pertaining to the labyrinth called Tax. He is an eminent Tax-Consultant.
‘Law and Procedure on Charitable Trusts and Religious Institutions provides charitable organisations with exhaustive guidelines which cannot be dispensed with. That the book has seen successive editions for nearly two decades, vouches for its widespread popularity and eminence. It would certainly ease the inevitable burden of complying with tax laws. Occasional amendments to Foreign Contribution Regulation Act and Money Laundering Act are undeniably intricate. Since charitable organizations have no respite from the obligations for TDS and GST, paying attention to all the stipulations would help prevention of violations. It is in this particular aspect that this book is an extremely useful guide. The book comprises 34 chapters which require concentration for perfect comprehension. Charitable and non-charitable objects have been clearly distinguished. Procedures for forming Trusts have been stated with clarity. The author has included every amendment and also relevant precedent to justify it. (For the sake of brevity let me cite a few segments of the book).
Obligations / Deductions/Exemptions (Ch.27) : Chapter 27 analyses in detail the obligations of charities and donors, approval and deduction rules, exemption laws, renewal modalities and several other relevant procedures. This chapter also clearly states how donations to Religious Institutions are treated.
Foreign Contributions – Objective and Scope (Ch.33): Chapter 33 is really significant to a great extent as it explains the objective and scope of foreign contributions. It also helps understand the special provisions in Foreign Exchange Management Act, which are applicable to voluntary Agencies.
Educational Trust for the downtrodden classes: On Page No.1345 to 1352 in the Annexure-IV, a model-deed is available for a registered society if it wishes to create an Educational Trust for the benefit of the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes and the Backward Classes.
The entire work is a compilation of current laws and procedures to be adhered to by charities and institutions which are involved in voluntary services. The incorporation of all the recent changes in the Finance Act (2019) and the status of the current Tax laws makes this book not only informative but also educative.
The assistance of the Co-authors M. Natarajan and C.P. Thangaraj and their contribution to this team-work have enriched the contents of the book and given it an elegant shape. Summing-up, I would like to say that it is the best guide for perfect clarity in documents and accounts.
