THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Chief Minister’s private secretary M V Jayarajan told Express the Centre had informed the state that the process for granting permission to the state Cabinet ministers to visit foreign countries was underway. “They are in consultation with the embassies in various countries and it is expected the permission will be granted without much delay,” he said.
On the conditions stipulated by the Centre with regard to the visit of the Chief Minister, Jayarajan said the Union Government had made clear that aid from foreign countries should not be accepted as it was against the policy of the Central Government.
The Union Government had courted controversy last year for denying permission to state Tourism and Cooperation Minister Kadakampally Surendran to attend the 22nd session of the general assembly of the World Tourism Organisation at Chengdu, China.
Earlier, Rajya Sabha member and former Minister Binoy Viswam had moved the Supreme Court, seeking to wield its extraordinary constitutional powers under Article 142 of the Constitution to do “complete justice” and direct the Centre to allow foreign aid for flood relief work and rehabilitation in Kerala, after the Centre turned down the proposal of the UAE to provide financial assistance to help Kerala.