Read Time: 06 minutes

Synopsis

The Allahabad High Court recently ruled that for issuance of a passport under the Indian Passport Act, no prior permission from the competent court is required where criminal cases are pending against the applicant. No such provision has been envisaged in the said Act, court emphasised. 

The bench of Justice Alok Mathur v. Arun Kumar Singh Deshwal was dealing with a writ petition filed by one Umapati whose application filed on January 20, 2022 under Section 5 of Indian Passport Act for issuance of a passport was still pending on end of passport authority.

He submitted that on his application, a report was called for from the Superintendent of Police, Sultanpur, which showed two ongoing criminal cases against him. The first case, from 2018, involves Sections 323, 504, and 506 of the IPC, while the second case involves Sections 323, 504, 506, 427, and 336 of the IPC.

The petitioner argued that the passport authority had not made any decision solely based on these cases.

Appearing for Union of India, Dy. Solicitor General of India S.B. Pandey opposed the petition arguing that the passport authority is not obliged to take any decision and the petitioner should apply to the court of competent jurisdiction where the criminal cases are pending for obtaining a passport.

The division bench took into consideration the submissions made by both sides and noted that under the Indian Passport Act, the application for grant of passport can be rejected on any of the conditions as prescribed under Sections 5 & 6 of the said Act. 

Further, court mentioned that the scheme of the Act clearly demonstrates that the application for issuance of a passport has to be considered and decided by the passport authority as per Section 5(2) of the Act of 1967.

Court, therefore, held that the competent authority under the Indian Passport Act is under a mandate to take a decision as per Sections 5.

"If he is of the opinion that it is a fit case for grant of a passport, he may pass an appropriate order for issuance of the passport and in case he feels that conditions exist for refusal for grant of the passport he may pass an appropriate order considering grounds of Section 6 of Indian Passport Act," it clarified. 

Apart from that, court highlighted that there was nothing mentioned in the petition regarding the petitioner's any plan to go abroad in which case he would have to apply to the court of competent jurisdiction as criminal cases are pending against him.

Court held that "once an application is made for grant of a passport then the authority has to take a decision in terms of statutory provisions under the Indian Passport Act.

Accordingly, court directed the passport authority to consider and decide the application preferred by the petitioner within a period of four weeks from the date of the order. 

Case Title: Umapati v. UOI and 3 Others