Punjab Chief Minister’s Office has refused RTI requests seeking details about Maryam Nawaz’s official vehicles, foreign tours, social media team, and a controversial luxury jet purchase.
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The Punjab Chief Minister’s Office has declined to share details regarding Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz’s official vehicles, foreign visits, and the Punjab government’s controversial luxury jet acquisition, triggering fresh debate over transparency and public accountability.
The information was sought by lawyer Abdullah Malik under Pakistan’s Right to Information (RTI) law, which guarantees citizens access to government-held information under Article 19-A of the Constitution.
Malik submitted separate applications to the Punjab Public Information Commission (PIC) in July 2025 and February 2026, requesting financial and administrative details linked to the chief minister’s office.
Among the information requested were expenditures on fuel, vehicle maintenance, domestic and foreign tours, helicopter or aircraft use, travel mileage, and details of officials accompanying Maryam Nawaz during foreign visits, including her reported trip to Japan.
The lawyer also sought information regarding the Punjab government’s acquisition of a Gulfstream G500 luxury jet — a 19-seat aircraft estimated to cost between $38 million and $42 million.
The purchase had already sparked criticism from opposition voices and social media users questioning the need for such an expensive aircraft amid economic pressure and inflation.
Initially, Punjab authorities avoided publicly discussing the aircraft acquisition, then later stated it was linked to a proposed provincial airline project.
However, in responses sent earlier this month, the CM Office refused to provide the requested details.
According to official replies dated April 28, the Public Information Officer (PIO) stated that the “desired information is not held by this office.”
The office also invoked a “legitimate exception” under Section 13(1)(e) of the Punjab Transparency and Right to Information Act, 2013, claiming disclosure could potentially affect the “life, health or safety” of individuals.
Critics argue the justification appears unusually broad for requests involving government expenditures, official transport and public-funded travel.
Records available with Dawn reportedly show the Public Information Officer repeatedly sought adjournments during proceedings before the Public Information Commission before eventually issuing the denial after warnings from the commission.
Interestingly, the same legal provision had also been used in 2021 to deny information regarding official vehicles used by former Punjab Chief Minister Usman Buzdar during the PTI government — a move strongly criticized at the time by PML-N leaders when they were in opposition.
The latest refusal has once again fueled concerns among transparency advocates, legal experts and opposition circles regarding access to public information and the selective application of accountability standards in Pakistan’s political system.
The Punjab government has not issued any additional clarification regarding the RTI refusals or the operational details of the reported luxury aircraft acquisition.
