CHANDIGARH: The Punjab Government has moved the Punjab and Haryana High Court, challenging the Union Ministry of External Affairs’ decision to deny political clearance, “without assigning any reason”, for an official visit to France by a delegation led by Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann from October 15 to 21 to promote trade.
The state has argued that the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) simply marked the application as “Denied” on its e-Pol Clearance portal without providing any reasons or granting the state an opportunity to be heard. It further contended that the Centre had turned a mechanism “meant for coordination into a veto over the executive functions of the State”.
The matter came up for hearing on Thursday before a Bench of Justice Tribhuvan Dahiya. In a 56-page civil writ petition filed against the Union of India and other respondents, the state has sought the quashing of the decision denying political clearance for the proposed visit of the Chief Minister, Chief Secretary and Principal Secretary to the Chief Minister.
The petition described the denial as “non-speaking, arbitrary, without authority of law and violative of the federal structure of the Constitution”.
The state submitted that the visit was proposed in connection with the participation of the Punjab State Cooperative Supply and Marketing Federation Ltd (MARKFED), the state government’s apex cooperative, in SIAL Paris 2026, an international food trade show scheduled to be held from October 17 to 21.
“The stall of MARKFED has been allotted under the APEDA India Pavilion by the Agricultural and Processed Food Products Export Development Authority (APEDA), which is a body under the Union Ministry of Commerce and Industry itself,” the petition stated.
It further submitted that the Indian Mission in France had been consulted, administrative approval and cadre clearance had been granted, and MARKFED would bear the entire expenditure on the visit.
Despite these steps, the petition alleged, the application had simply been marked “Denied” on the portal, without any reasons being provided or an opportunity of hearing being afforded to the state.
According to the petition, the state government’s Department of Cooperation had approached the MEA for clearance through letters dated September 3 and 8. The state then submitted the online application for political clearance on September 9, more than five weeks before the proposed visit.
The state has sought a writ of certiorari or any other appropriate writ, order or direction quashing the decision denying political clearance. It has also sought a direction to the respondents to grant clearance for the proposed visit forthwith and produce the complete record relating to the decision on the application.
The state contended that the decision amounted to unwarranted interference by the Centre in matters falling within the state’s executive powers under Article 162 of the Constitution, read with Entries 14, 24, 26, 27 and 32 of List II of the Seventh Schedule.
It has also sought an interim direction for the grant of political clearance during the pendency of the petition, subject to its final outcome.
“Since the delegation is scheduled to leave on October 15, the matter requires urgent consideration,” the state submitted.
Additional Solicitor General of India Satya Pal Jain sought a “short accommodation” to obtain instructions and file an affidavit, with an advance copy to be provided to counsel representing the petitioner.
The case will now come up for further hearing on Friday.