New Delhi: The Punjab and Haryana high court last week rejected the Union external affairs ministry’s reasons for denying political clearance to Punjab chief minister Bhagwant Mann for his visit to France.The court said that the ministry had failed to explain the “political angle” it cited to deny the clearance. A detailed copy of the order was release on Saturday (October 16), a day after the court held the hearing.The high court has allowed the Punjab government’s petition challenging the denial of permission to a three-member delegation comprising Mann, the chief secretary and the principal secretary to the chief minister.“It has not been explained what that political angle/viewpoint is, and whether political clearance means examining the application from a political angle. No reasons are forthcoming,” the court said.The delegation was scheduled to visit Paris from October 17-21 to promote trade and attend SIAL Paris 2026, a food and beverage innovation trade, the Times of India reported.The Union government had denied clearance for the visit on October 12, after the Punjab government applied through its e-Pol Clearance System on September 9.What the court saidJustice Tribhuvan Dahiya rejected the ministry’s arguments that the French government had not issued a proper invitation and that Mann had no functional role during the proposed visit.The court said the claim about the absence of an invitation could not be accepted because SIAL had sent a letter to the French Embassy in India on September 22, welcoming Mann and describing the visit as an opportunity to establish professional contacts and negotiate contracts.The bench also questioned why the ministry needed to examine Mann’s functional role when he was heading the delegation and the stated reason for denying clearance was the “political angle”.The court held that reasons provided to the bench in an affidavit could not be used to justify the original decision of the government if they were not mentioned in the order itself.Union government’s argumentThe Union government argued that decisions on political clearance depended on factors like bilateral relations, the political situation in the host country, the diplomatic climate and anti-India activities in the country concerned, the report said. It said that reasons for refusing clearance might not always be disclosed on the portal because of the sensitivity of bilateral relations.The Union government also cited security concerns, arguing that the absence of a proper bilateral invitation would prevent the necessary security arrangements and protocol from being put in place, the report said.Punjab government calls rejection ‘arbitrary’The Punjab government, while calling the denial arbitrary, said that no reasons had been provided for the ministry’s decision. The state government was also not given a chance to explain its position. It also said the decision had been communicated at the last minute.The court noted that the Agricultural and Processed Food Products Export Development Authority (APEDA) had confirmed Markfed’s participation in the exhibition and allotted it a stall. Markfed was to bear the cost of the visit, the Times of India reported.