Disclose action taken against Rashtrapati Bhavan officials on loaned gifts: CIC

NEW DELHI, May 15 (PTI) The CIC has directed the President's Secretariat to disclose the action taken against Rashtrapati Bhavan officials who permitted giving on loan the gifts received by the then President Pratibha Patil in her official capacity to a school owned by her family in Amravati in Maharashtra.

Chief Information Commissioner R K Mathur directed the President's Secretariat to disclose the information after an RTI application was filed by activist Subhash Agrawal.

In his RTI plea, Agrawal sought "complete information" on action taken against those who permitted gift items received in official capacity by the then President to be given to Vidya Bharati Shaikshanik Mandai, Amravati.

Rashtrapati Bhavan in an earlier RTI reply had said that 155 gifts received by Patil in her official capacity were loaned to the school for display on a purely temporary basis.

All the gift items which included candle set received from UK Prime Minister, a gold medallion and a silver medallion of Nelson Mandela, a gift box from China among others were returned to Rashtrapati Bhavan on May 22, 2013.

Rashtrapati Bhavan in its reply had said the gifts were loaned to Vidya Bharati Shaikshanik Mandal after an MoU was signed between Rashtrapati Bhavan and the institute.

The reply had also said 36 artifacts were handed over to DRDO during the presidency of APJ Abdul Kalam for being displayed in the Brahmos Centre in New Delhi.

All the 36 items were received back at Rashtrapati Bhavan on October 3, 2012, it had said.