117 ‘private’ foreign trips by LDF ministers in 10 years; Pinarayi made four

Thiruvanathapuram: Ministers in Kerala's Left Democratic Front (LDF) government undertook 117 private foreign trips over the past decade, according to official records cited in reports. Former Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan made four private trips during his ten years in office, while several other ministers recorded higher numbers of overseas journeys for personal purposes.

Kerala's LDF government has come under scrutiny over the overseas travel of its ministers after records detailing their foreign trips during the past decade were reported. The figures have also prompted questions about the Left front's criticism of opposition ministers over their overseas travel.

According to the reported records, ministers in the first Pinarayi Vijayan government undertook 84 foreign trips, of which 31 were for private purposes. During the second government, the total reportedly rose to 150 trips, including 86 classified as private.

Across the two administrations, ministers made 117 private foreign trips, according to the figures cited in the report.

How many foreign trips did Pinarayi Vijayan make?

Pinarayi Vijayan undertook 30 foreign trips during his decade as Chief Minister, according to the reported records. Of these, 22 were official trips and four were private trips. The report also mentions overseas travel for medical treatment in the United States.

The figures place Vijayan below several ministers in terms of the number of private foreign trips. The reported records state that Roshy Augustine, P. Prasad and K.B. Ganesh Kumar undertook more private trips than the former Chief Minister.

Roshy Augustine tops private travel figures in second cabinet

Water Resources Minister Roshy Augustine reportedly made 15 foreign trips during the second Pinarayi Vijayan government, of which 14 were for personal purposes.

P. Prasad, K.B. Ganesh Kumar and R. Bindu were also reported to have travelled abroad exclusively for personal reasons.

Other ministers' reported private foreign trips during the second cabinet included:

• Mohamed Riyas and Veena George: six trips each.
• Abdurahiman: nine trips.
• G.R. Anil: seven trips.
• M.B. Rajesh: four trips.

The report also identifies ministers who undertook private foreign trips during the first Pinarayi Vijayan government. V.S. Sunil Kumar reportedly made six private trips, while Kadakampally Surendran made four. K. Raju made three, and G. Sudhakaran and K.K. Shailaja made two each.

Six ministers were reported to have made no private foreign trips: V. Sivankutty, Saji Cherian, T.P. Ramakrishnan, Ahmed Devarkovil, Mathew T. Thomas and Mercykutty Amma.

Political row over ministers' overseas travel

The travel figures have emerged amid criticism from Left leaders over opposition ministers' overseas trips, including allegations that some travelled for personal purposes on sponsored visits.

The reported records have raised questions about the consistency of such criticism, given the number of private trips attributed to ministers in the LDF government itself.

However, the figures alone do not establish whether individual trips breached government rules or involved any misuse of public funds. Those questions would depend on the purpose of each journey, the source of funding, official permissions and applicable travel rules.

What the figures reveal

The reported figures distinguish between official foreign visits and trips classified as private. That distinction matters because the purpose and funding of overseas travel determine whether public expenditure or official responsibilities are involved.

The increase from 84 reported trips during the first cabinet to 150 during the second also raises questions about how ministers' overseas travel was classified and recorded. The figures indicate that private trips accounted for a substantial share of the journeys reported for the second government.

The political debate centres on whether parties apply consistent standards when questioning the overseas travel of their own ministers and those from rival parties. A fair assessment requires the underlying records, including trip dates, stated purposes, funding sources and any official approvals.

The figures should therefore be treated as reported travel data rather than proof of wrongdoing by individual ministers.