Senior Advocate Indira Jaising denies receiving money from PFI for anti-CAA protests

Senior Advocate Indira Jaising has issued a statement denying the receipt of any money for undertaking protests against the controversial Citizenship (Amendment) Act, 2019 (CAA)..Zee News had earlier published a report claiming that Jaising, along with fellow Senior Advocates Kapil Sibal and Dushyant Dave, had received money from Islamic outfit Popular Front of India (PFI).According to the report, Sibal had received Rs. 77 lakh, Dave Rs. 11 lakh, and Jaising Rs. 4 lakh from PFI for carrying out anti-CAA protests. This apparently came to light after Zee News did an analysis of 73 bank accounts of PFI..The lawyers, however, have denied taking any money from PFI for the purpose of anti-CAA protests. In a statement issued online, Jaising stated,.I completely and vehemently deny having received any money from PFI at any point of time, or receiving any money from any person of organisation in relation to anti-CAA protests.Statement by Indira Jaising.The other lawyers have also denied the allegations made in the Zee News report. While Sibal dismissed the report as "nonsense", Dave stated that he might have been paid fees by PFI for appearing in the Hadiya matter. Dave was quoted as saying,."Our fees in matters I appear are paid by Advocates on Record. I have never appeared for PFI but don’t recollect if some fees in a matter was paid by them on behalf of some other party or cause espoused by them. Anyway, it doesn’t matter to me. I appear for the cause of minorities all the time, Sikhs or Muslims or others.I don’t think it was a banned organisation when I was paid fees, if they paid. Only matter I recollect where Muslim organisation was involved was Hadiya case…”.Congress leader Sibal has also similarly denied the connection between the payments he received and the anti-CAA protests. Sibal had also appeared in the Hadiya case before the Supreme Court. He says that the payment of Rs. 77 lakh was made much before the CAA was even passed as law. In this light, the statement reads,.I was paid for professional services rendered and for nothing else. Any insinuations made to besmirch my good name and defame me will be taken seriously.Statement by Kapil Sibal.The statement also lists out the invoices of payments received by Sibal from Advocate on Record Haris Beeran, for appearing in the Hadiya case. Sibal had made seven appearances in the matter, charging Rs. 11 lakh for each appearance.