Explained | Understanding the provisions for foreign visits of State government Ministers

Source: The post is based on the article “Explained | Understanding the provisions for foreign visits of State government Ministers” published in The Hindu on 4th August 2022.

What is the News?

Delhi State Transport Minister has moved the Delhi High Court with a plea to set aside the need for travel clearances by the Centre for private foreign visits of State government Ministers. 

He has also asked for the framing of appropriate guidelines with respect to the clearances for official foreign tours of Chief Ministers and other State government members.

Under which provisions are approvals required?

In 1982, the Cabinet Secretariat issued an office memorandum titled ‘Guidelines regarding foreign travel of Ministers of State government and Union Territories and State government officials’.

– The guidelines stated that foreign visits by members of the State governments in their official capacity would require clearances from the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA), Ministry of Home Affairs, Finance Ministry and Central Administrative Ministry.

In 2004, another circular was issued which stated that Chief Ministers required further approval from the Prime Minister’s Office before an official visit. 

In 2010, yet another office memorandum made political clearances mandatory before private visits of Ministers in State governments. This memorandum was reiterated in 2015.

On what grounds has the petition been filed?

The petition seeks a quashing of the 2010 and 2015 office memoranda on the following grounds:

Firstly, the need for political clearances from the MEA for personal foreign visits of State government Ministers violates their right to privacy and dignity of their constitutional office.

Secondly, the use of gross delay to effectively deny clearances for official foreign visits is an arbitrary non-exercise of power and 

Thirdly, the manner of implementation of the relevant office memoranda on clearances for official visits suffers from the vice of arbitrariness and unchannelled discretion.

Lastly, the travel clearance Office Memoranda is against national interest and good governance and impinges upon the right to travel abroad as guaranteed under Article 21.