The CPIO explained
that the names of countries or the sources of gifts cannot be disclosed
in the light of the CIC's order No CIC/AD/C/2009/000802 dated December
21, 2009 (available on the CIC website).
The applicant, Mohammad Khalid Jilani, a lawyer from Bareilly, had filed the RTI query with the office of the Central Public Information Officer (CPIO) at the Prime Minister's Office seeking information on three points — the gifts, mementoes and trophies Singh brought home, what he said before stepping down as PM and what he earned in the 10 years that he led the country.
READ ALSO: History will be kind to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh
The CPIO explained that the names of countries or the sources of gifts cannot be disclosed in the light of the CIC's order No CIC/AD/C/2009/000802 dated December 21, 2009 (available on the CIC website). The gifts have been retained by Dr Manmohan Singh as permitted under the Foreign Contribution (Acceptance or Retention of Gifts or Presentations) Regulations 1978 and Foreign Contribution (Acceptance or Retention of Gifts or Presentations) Rules 2012.
Responding on behalf of the PMO, assistant secretary and central public information officer (CPIO) Syed Ikram Rizvi in his letter dated July 9, 2014 said that Singh was entitled to salary and perks as per provisions of the amended Pay and Perks Act for ministers 1952. He added that no information was available regarding the comments and observations made by Singh as he left office.
On the other hand, in response to his request for details of gifts and other items, CPIO, Ministry of External Affairs, Rajesh Kapoor via a letter dated June 23, 2014, furnished a list of 101 items ranging from a Bose sound system valued at around Rs 20,000 to one gold-plated Piaget ladies wrist watch worth Rs 35,000 as well as a carpet priced at Rs 30,000.
Apart from these, the PM's memorabilia included crockery, decorative pieces, fine glass items, gold and silver-plated vessels, replicas, carpet, jewellery pieces, paintings, ceramic and porcelain artwork and others things ranging from as little as Rs 300 to Rs 35,000, the CPIO has said.
Former PM ManMohan Singh retains 101 gifts while demitting office
rtifoundationofindia.com/former-pm-manmohan-singh-retains-101-gifts-while-d29 Jul, 2014
In a reply to an application filed under the Right to Information (RTI)
Act, the Ministry of External Affairs has informed that while demitting
the office, the former Prime Minister ManMohan Singh chose to take with
him 101 of the numerous gifts received from ‘foreign sources’ during
his tenure. The gifts retained by him include:
· 11 carpets,
· 10 paintings,
· five tea sets, including a 22-piece Noritake one,
· a Bose sound system,
· a gold-plated Piaget ladies wrist watch, and
· an ornamental silver elephant embedded with semi-precious stones.
As per the Foreign Contribution (Acceptance or Retention of Gifts or
Presentation) Rules 2012, Singh in entitled to keep gifts upto a value
of Rs. 5000/- and if the evaluated cost of a gift is above the limit, he
has to pay the difference if he wants to keep it. According to the
information provided, only seven gift items retained by Singh have been
assessed at more than Rs. 5000/-. The assessed value of some of the
gifts kept by him has invited criticism.
· The gold-plated Piaget watch has been assessed by the
government at Rs. 35,000 while the company website cites the price of
Rs. 4 lakh-plus for a similar watch. Critics have pointed that there is
hardly anything on the Piaget website which is less than Rs.1.5 lakh.
· The assessed value of the Bose Wave music system is Rs.
20,000/- while the cheapest Bose Wave music system in India costs Rs.
39,000.
· While a 17-piece set costs over Rs. 20,000/- online, the
Noritake 22-piece tea set retained by Singh has been assessed at Rs.
5,500/-.
RTI Foundation of India
Former
PM ManMohan Singh retains 101 gifts while demitting office
29 Jul, 2014
In a reply to an application filed under the Right to Information (RTI)
Act, the Ministry of External Affairs has informed that while demitting
the office, the former Prime Minister ManMohan Singh chose to take with
him 101 of the numerous gifts received from ‘foreign sources’ during his
tenure. The gifts retained by him include:
· 11 carpets,
· 10 paintings,
· five tea sets, including a 22-piece Noritake one,
· a Bose sound system,
· a gold-plated Piaget ladies wrist watch, and
· an ornamental silver elephant embedded with semi-precious
stones.
As per the Foreign Contribution (Acceptance or Retention of Gifts or
Presentation) Rules 2012, Singh in entitled to keep gifts upto a value
of Rs. 5000/- and if the evaluated cost of a gift is above the limit, he
has to pay the difference if he wants to keep it. According to the
information provided, only seven gift items retained by Singh have been
assessed at more than Rs. 5000/-. The assessed value of some of the
gifts kept by him has invited criticism.
· The gold-plated Piaget watch has been assessed by the
government at Rs. 35,000 while the company website cites the price of
Rs. 4 lakh-plus for a similar watch. Critics have pointed that there is
hardly anything on the Piaget website which is less than Rs.1.5 lakh.
· The assessed value of the Bose Wave music system is Rs.
20,000/- while the cheapest Bose Wave music system in India costs Rs.
39,000.
· While a 17-piece set costs over Rs. 20,000/- online, the
Noritake 22-piece tea set retained by Singh has been assessed at Rs.
5,500/-.Read more at: http://www.rtifoundationofindia.com/former-pm-manmohan-singh-retains-101-gifts-while-d#null
RTI Foundation of India
RTI Foundation of India
Former
PM ManMohan Singh retains 101 gifts while demitting office
29 Jul, 2014
In a reply to an application filed under the Right to Information (RTI)
Act, the Ministry of External Affairs has informed that while demitting
the office, the former Prime Minister ManMohan Singh chose to take with
him 101 of the numerous gifts received from ‘foreign sources’ during his
tenure. The gifts retained by him include:
· 11 carpets,
· 10 paintings,
· five tea sets, including a 22-piece Noritake one,
· a Bose sound system,
· a gold-plated Piaget ladies wrist watch, and
· an ornamental silver elephant embedded with semi-precious
stones.
As per the Foreign Contribution (Acceptance or Retention of Gifts or
Presentation) Rules 2012, Singh in entitled to keep gifts upto a value
of Rs. 5000/- and if the evaluated cost of a gift is above the limit, he
has to pay the difference if he wants to keep it. According to the
information provided, only seven gift items retained by Singh have been
assessed at more than Rs. 5000/-. The assessed value of some of the
gifts kept by him has invited criticism.
· The gold-plated Piaget watch has been assessed by the
government at Rs. 35,000 while the company website cites the price of
Rs. 4 lakh-plus for a similar watch. Critics have pointed that there is
hardly anything on the Piaget website which is less than Rs.1.5 lakh.
· The assessed value of the Bose Wave music system is Rs.
20,000/- while the cheapest Bose Wave music system in India costs Rs.
39,000.
· While a 17-piece set costs over Rs. 20,000/- online, the
Noritake 22-piece tea set retained by Singh has been assessed at Rs.
5,500/-.Read more at: http://www.rtifoundationofindia.com/former-pm-manmohan-singh-retains-101-gifts-while-d#null
