Chhattisgarh chief minister Bhupesh Baghel on Monday revealed the amount of donation received and the money spent in the battle against coronavirus in his state, giving a fillip to the Congress campaign for transparency in the PM-CARES Fund.

“I am presenting before you the details of the Chief Minister’s Relief Fund. Between March 24 and May 7, the Chief Minister’s Relief Fund has received donations worth Rs 56,04,38,815 (56.04 crore). Of which, Rs 10,25,30,000 (10.25 crore) has been sanctioned and released to the districts. You have reposed faith in the government in this phase of crisis and it becomes my duty to maintain transparency in expenses. Hope you will continue to cooperate,” Baghel tweeted.

While only auditing will reveal whether or not the funds have been used judiciously, Baghel’s move to put out the figures has bolstered the Congress campaign for transparency at the national level.

The party has questioned the creation of a separate PM-CARES Fund when the Prime Minister Disaster Relief Fund has existed for decades.

Through a social media campaign, it has also asked what the Prime Minister was trying to hide by not allowing auditing of the new fund by the Comptroller & Auditor General (CAG).

“What the PM doesn’t care about: PPEs, economy, planning and transparency,” the party said.

The Congress has asked the Prime Minister to disclose how much money has been received so far in the PM-CARES Fund and how it was being used.

The party dug up an old video of Narendra Modi in which he as Gujarat chief minister is asking aggressively whether every single penny available with the Centre should be accounted for or not.

Pointing to the Right to Information Act, he is asking the audience at a public rally in his characteristic style whether or not people have the right to know about the national exchequer.