The Union government has said it has no records of the six-decades-old Hyderabad Funds case, in which over £1 million of the Nizam’s wealth was transferred to a London bank account in the name of Pakistan’s High Commissioner in 1948.
Surprisingly, the Press Information Bureau had issued a statement in 2008 that the Union Cabinet had cleared an out-of-court settlement with Pakistan.
The Central Information Commission has directed the External Affairs Ministry to disclose whether any negotiation was started between India and Pakistan over the treasure, now estimated to be £30 million.
The decision came after the External Affairs and Law Ministries said they had no records of the treasure. In his question to the Law Ministry under the Right to Information Act, Akbar Ali Khan wanted certified copies of the records pertaining to the deposits made on September 20, 1948. The Ministry said it did not have any such records.
“As the CPIO and the First Appellate Authority stated that they searched all files and could not find the papers sought by the appellant, the Commission holds that no directive could be issued to the public authority to provide information…,” Information Commissioner Sridhar Acharyulu said in his directive to the Law Ministry. — PTI
CIC has asked Foreign Ministry to disclose whether any negotiation was started over the treasure
