Kavi sammelans, golf rounds: Why some Governors go abroad

One went to play golf, another to attend the graduation ceremony of a granddaughter.

Other Governors travelled overseas to attend Marwari, Maratha, or similar sammelans.

Admittedly, several of these Governors’ trips abroad were personal, or “private” visits.

Between 2009 and now, only 17 Governors sought a no-objection certificate from the government to travel abroad. Ten of them went overseas on one occasion; seven Governors travelled more than once, records show.

According to the data, Gen (retd) J J Singh, who was Governor of Arunachal Pradesh from 2008 until May 2013, was the most frequent flier, making nine trips abroad during his tenure, six of which have been described as “private” in the Home Ministry’s reply.

Five of these private visits were to UK-France; one to the US-Canada. He spent a total 73 days abroad on these trips, according to records.

One of Gen Singh’s trips abroad was to Dubai for eight days in 2011 “to participate in the Dubai Desert Classic Golf Tournament”. This trip has not been marked “private” in the RTI reply; however, reached for a comment, Gen Singh said this was not an official visit.

Two of the former Governor’s official trips were to Singapore, the details of one of which he was unable to recollect. About the other trip to Singapore, and his personal visits abroad, Gen Singh said, “My trip to Singapore was to address the Singapore International Water Week in June 2009, and to deliver a talk on the water resources of Northeastern India. The details of the event, in which the Prime Minister of Singapore participated as the chief guest, are available on the Internet.

“Regarding my private visits abroad during my tenure of over five years, they were primarily to spend time with my son and his family in Normandy. We consider it a duty and an obligation to spend a week or two with our children and grandchildren at least once a year. Besides that, I visited UK, USA and Canada in connection with the release of my autobiography, ‘A Soldiers General’, which was launched in Delhi in 2012.”

D Y Patil, who is currently Governor of Bihar, had, as Governor of Tripura in 2011, visited Bangladesh for four days on an “invitation from the Bangladesh Foreign Minister”, according to the reply. Between May 1 and May 5 last year, Patil visited Mauritius “to attend Maharashtra and Shivajee Day”.

The D Y Patil Group, founded by Patil, runs a medical college in Mauritius. A senior officer at Patna’s Raj Bhavan said, “Patil does not take any money from the government. He visited Mauritius at the invitation of the Marathi community there, and attended a function at his college. The government bore the expenses of some members of the Governor’s staff who travelled with him.”

About a month after being sworn in as Governor of West Bengal on July 24, Keshari Nath Tripathi went to the UK for eight days to “participate in the Virat Kavi Sammelan”.

The Home Ministry received a letter from the Ministry of External Affairs, saying “It is recommended that a formal financial sanction may be issued to enable the High Commission of India, London, to cover the expenditure for the above visit as Shri Tripathi holds the position of Governor.”

Tripathi has attended kavi sammelans in London before being appointed Governor as well. Raj Bhavan, Kolkata, did not respond to requests for a comment.
M C Bhandare, who was Governor of Orissa until March last year, spent 56 days abroad in the course of six personal trips. Four of these visits were to Singapore, and one each to South Africa and the UK. He visited Singapore thrice in 2009.

Bhandare’s trip to London was to “attend the graduation ceremony of granddaughter”. Reached for a comment, the former Governor said, “I visited South Africa to pay homage to Mahatma Gandhi and Nelson Mandela. My private visits to Singapore were to be with my son, who has an office and home there.”

Uttarakhand Governor Aziz Qureshi sought Home Ministry clearance to visit Dubai twice last year to participate in poetry recitation programmes. “Yes, I took permission to attend a kavi sammelan and a mushaira organised by the Indian community there, but was ultimately unable to go,” Qureshi told The Indian Express.

The Home Ministry must clear, and the President must approve, all visits abroad by Governors. The Indian Express’s RTI application was sent to the President’s Secretariat, which forwarded it to the Home Ministry. The information provided by the Ministry is for cases “for which the MHA has conveyed its no-objection”.

M K Narayanan, who resigned as Governor of West Bengal on June 30, spent a total 35 days abroad, spread over eight official trips, during his tenure. One of Narayanan’s trips was “to accept Gusi Peace Prize” in the Philippines, and another to Bhutan to attend the “wedding ceremony of His Majesty Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck, King of Bhutan”.

Narayanan said: “All the trips were officially approved and sanctioned by the President of India and the central government.”

N D Tiwari, who had to resign as Andhra Pradesh Governor in 2009 after a sex video of him surfaced, had, barely a month earlier, spent 23 days in the USA “to study critical academic and administrative aspects with a view to develop higher education system in Andhra Pradesh”.

He returned on November 23, 2009, and resigned on December 26.

Jagannath Pahadia, who was Governor of Haryana until July, visited Nepal in 2012 for four days to be the chief guest at “Nepali Marwari Community Social Gathering and Maharaja Agrasen Jayanti Celebrations”.

The octogenarian Pahadia told The Sunday Express, “Yes, I visited Nepal along with some officials in October 2012, but I no longer remember the details of the programme.”

Tamil Nadu Governor K Rosaiah visited Malaysia last year for three days to attend the “International Conference of World Telugu Federation”.

According to the Home Ministry, Governors who sought no-objection certificates for more than one trip were: Gen J J Singh, M C Bhandare, K Sankaranarayanan, M K Narayanan, S C Jamir, Margaret Alva, D Y Patil and Aziz Qureshi.