Tania Zaetta in hot water over `illegal` charity now

Melbourne: Former Bollywood actress Tania Zaetta`s troubles seem to be unending. Though she is reportedly set to get a clean chit in a case of alleged drunken misbehaviour, the model`s charity is facing closure following a probe into "illegal" fund-raising.

The TV presenter who is a familiar face in India thanks to appearances in films like `Salaam Namaste` and `Bunty Aur Babli`, was arrested on March 21 at a Surfers Paradise night club and booked for creating public nuisance and obstructing police. She had denied both charges during a court appearance in April and her lawyer Chris Nyst said that after watching the CCTV footage of the incident, he expects her to be given a clean chit. But the 41-year-old actress` charity `Peace For Children` will close down following a probe by Queensland Office of Fair Trading. The investigation was initiated after it was revealed it was not a registered charity. It has focused on USD 22,000 raised last December during two events on the Gold Coast, where the charity auctioned a signed and framed Michael Clarke Ashes 2010 shirt and a tennis racquet signed by Pat Cash. The charity`s solicitor Clinton Smith today said an audit of the organisation`s funds by IPS Audit showed USD 3030 had been donated to charity, before Zaetta had learnt of "an oversight" in the registration of the charity. "This was an oversight on Tania`s behalf. The charity is a charity. It wasn`t registered under the Collections Act to raise funds and that was an oversight. Zaetta had all the accounts audited and she voluntarily went to the Office of Fair Trading," Smith said. Smith has denied reports he would join Zaetta in forming a new charity, saying Peace for the Children would cease to exist once the investigation was complete. He said the charity`s remaining USD 11,273 in funds would be given to an existing "completely separate" charity. "Peace for the Children won`t reform, all the assets of the charity will be given to another charity with the express intention that it will continue on with the same projects Tania aligned herself with," he said. "She will be involved in the charity that the moneys will be donated to in the future, because she wants to continue on with the projects that she started," he added. PTI