Kailash Gahlot, a former minister from the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) and now a BJP MLA, has withdrawn his legal challenge against a central government provision requiring state ministers to obtain political clearances for foreign travel. The case was dismissed by the Delhi High Court on Wednesday, as confirmed during a session presided over by Justice Sachin Datta.
The issue originated from an incident in 2022 when then Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal was denied permission to attend the 8th World Cities’ Summit in Singapore. Gahlot’s petition, filed that year, pointed to this and other similar instances as “abuse of discretion.” He highlighted his own experience where his request for clearance to visit London, invited by Transport for London, went unanswered by the central authorities until it was too late to be actionable.
The petition aimed to establish guidelines for the enforcement of several Office Memoranda issued by the Cabinet Secretariat. These memoranda grant the central government the authority to approve or deny foreign travel requests made by state government officials in their official capacities.
Gahlot’s plea criticized the arbitrary nature of how travel clearances are handled, arguing that it not only undermines good urban governance but also affects India’s representation on global platforms. The petition specifically accused the respondent number one, the Lieutenant Governor (LG), of acting beyond his jurisdiction and contributing to a system marked by arbitrary and unrestricted discretion.
In a significant political shift, Gahlot resigned as Delhi’s Transport Minister in November 2024 and subsequently joined the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). His withdrawal from the case marks the end of this particular legal battle over the central oversight of state ministers’ international engagements.
