Receiving a bequest
When Katoo Sidhwa bequeathed her holding in an equity fund to Beauty Without Cruelty (BWC), the nongovermental organization faced considerable obstacles in realizing the gift.
BWC chairperson Diana Ratnagar noted in the Summer 2022 journal Compassionate Friend that the fund "did not appreciate BWC’s limitations as a charitable trust and did not give us the money immediately.” Sidhwa, a life member of BWC, had passed away in June 2021. The interest from the bequest "will enable one issue of our quarterly to be sponsored in her memory every year,” wrote Ratnagar.
Citing rules and regulations, the fund "treated us just like any other new investor… Having to follow up with them for several months was very frustrating,” she added. The trust was "eventually able to redeem the units and claim the bequest.
"It is an extremely cumbersome process for a charity to claim nominated funds instead of executors liquidating and handing over the bequest.” This may well be a key pointer for both the philanthropic minded as well as nongovernmental organizations to keep in mind, as the animal rights activist noted.
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