Kozhikode: An RTI query has revealed that most ministers of the LDF government have failed to produce bills for the expenditure incurred on their overseas trips. Ever since the government has come to power, 15 ministers went on 40 foreign trips, but only five have submitted the bills of their air tickets. In all, they have submitted bills worth Rs 11 lakh.
According to a reply received for an RTI query, the general administration department of the Kerala government revealed that the bills of six foreign trips have been submitted by these ministers seeking reimbursement. At the same time, the chief minister and other ministers are yet to submit their treatment bills for reimbursement so far, the general administration department (accounts) replied to Kochi native S Dhanaraj who had filed an RTI query in this regard.
Chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan has so far undertaken six foreign trips. But he has only submitted the bills for two air tickets, which include the official visit to Dubai in December 2016 and the US visit in July this year.
For the first trip, he has sought a reimbursement of Rs 93,295 and for the second one, Rs 38,280. The chief minister is yet to submit bills for four more foreign trips. The bills for the treatment that he underwent in Mayo Clinic in the US are also yet to be submitted by the chief minister.
Higher education and minority affairs minister K T Jaleel has sought reimbursement of Rs 1,41,502 for his Russian trip in September 2017. Health minister K K Shailaja has submitted bills worth Rs 90,000 for her London trip in October last year.
Finance minister Thomas Isaac has already received Rs 78,343 for the Rome trip that he undertook in 2016. Devaswom minister Kadakampally Surendran has submitted bills valued at Rs 3,18,148 for his London visit in November 2017.
