The Central Information Commission has directed the Ministry of External Affairs(MEA) to disclose the names of those private individuals who have travelled with Prime Minister Narendra Modi on foreign tours.
RTI activist Karabi Das has approached the ministry seeking information on expenses incurred on the foreign visits of the prime minister in 2015-16 and 2016-17 along with the list of people who accompanied him.
The information which was shared with Das didn't satisfy him and he approached the commission. The ministry had demanded Rs 224 for providing the information which was deposited by the applicant, activist Subhash Agrawal, who represented the applicant during the hearing, told Chief Information Commissioner R K Mathur.
In its submissions during the hearing, the ministry said no other data is maintained in consolidated form regarding the visits of the prime minister except date and place of visit and the expenses incurred on chartered flights.
The ministry also told the commission that it will look into the matter with regard to the payment of Rs 224 and provide updated information. "List of private persons (not linked with security) who traveled with the Prime Minister of India at government expenditure should be provided to the appellant redacting names of other officials," Mathur ordered.
Rejecting Air India's claim that details of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's foreign visits are confidential in a fiduciary capacity, the Central Information Commissioner (CIC) has sought financial records from the company. It said the expenditure of the PM's trips were made from the public exchequer and, therefore, could not be exempt from disclosure.
