Flight check

Recently, a newspaper reported former Civil Aviation Minister Praful Patel saying he had written to current incumbent Ajit Singh requesting a full investigation into the allegation that he (Patel) had commandeered Air India aircraft to fly his close relatives Male-Bangalore-Male when he headed the ministry. Now it seems Patel may have mis-spoken, to put it politely. At least according to the civil aviation ministry. In a response to a Right to Information (RTI) application by an activist asking whether it had received a copy of the letter, whether a copy could be furnished and what action had been taken, the ministry’s response was a bland: “No information available.”