Gujarat High Court
Rushabh Kamleshbhai Pandya vs State Of Gujarat on 4 May, 2022
Author: Ilesh J. Vora
Bench: Ilesh J. Vora
R/SCR.A/3966/2022 ORDER DATED: 04/05/2022
IN THE HIGH COURT OF GUJARAT AT AHMEDABAD
R/SPECIAL CRIMINAL APPLICATION NO. 3966 of 2022
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RUSHABH KAMLESHBHAI PANDYA
Versus
STATE OF GUJARAT
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Appearance:
MR CHETAN K PANDYA(1973) for the Applicant(s) No. 1
DS AFF.NOT FILED (N) for the Respondent(s) No. 3
NOTICE SERVED BY DS for the Respondent(s) No. 2
MS KRINA CALLA, APP for the Respondent(s) No. 1
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CORAM:HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE ILESH J. VORA
Date : 04/05/2022
ORAL ORDER
1. By this petition under Article 226 of the Constitution of India, the writ-applicant has prayed for the following reliefs :-
"(A) To issue a Writ of Mandamus or Writ of Certiorari or any writ, order or direction directing the respondent No.2 &3 passport authority to accept and entertain the petitioners' Application Reference No.22-000341718 for re-issuance of passport for a period of 10 years.
(B) Pending admission, hearing and disposal of this petition, to direct the respondent No.2 & 3 passport authority to accept the petitioners' Application Reference No. 22-000341718 for re-issuance of passport for a period of 10 years.
(C) To pass such other and further orders as may be deemed fit and proper and in the interest of the petitioner."Page 1 of 4 Downloaded on : Mon May 09 20:18:13 IST 2022
R/SCR.A/3966/2022 ORDER DATED: 04/05/2022
2. It appears from the materials on record that, as on date, there is one prosecution pending against the writ-applicant herein for the offence punishable under Sections 323, 294 (b), 506 (1) and 114 of the Indian Penal Code and under Section 135 (1) of the Gujarat Police Act being F.I.R. II C.R. No.3112 of 2007 with Sola High Court Police Station. The Investigating Officer has also filed charge-sheet and the same was registered as Criminal Case No.4555 of 2008 and is pending before learned Additional Judicial First Class, Court No.11, Ahmedabad (Rural), Mirzapur. As per the case of the petitioner, his wife has gone to Australia on 25.2.2017 on student visa for further education. The petitioner also intends to join his wife at Australia and, therefore, applied for Passport which was declined by the respondent authority. Hence, the present petition.
3. The authority concerned shall look into the notification issued by the Ministry of External Affairs dated 25.08.1993 in this regard. It reads as under :-
"In exercise of the process conferred by clause (a) of Section 22 of the Passport Act, 1967 (15 of 1967) and in supersession of the Notification of the Government of India in the Ministry of External Affairs No. G.S.R 298 (E) dated the 14th April, 1976, the Central Government, being of the opinion that it is necessary in public interest to do so, hereby exempts citizens of India against whom proceedings in respect of an offence alleged to have been committed by them are pending before a criminal Court in India and who produce Page 2 of 4 Downloaded on : Mon May 09 20:18:13 IST 2022 R/SCR.A/3966/2022 ORDER DATED: 04/05/2022 orders from the Court concerned permitting them to depart from India, from the operation of the provisions of Clause (f) of sub-section (2) of Section 6 of the said Act, subject to the following conditions, namely :-
(a) the passport to be issued to every such citizen shall be issued --
(i) for the period specified in order of the court referred to above, if the court specifies a period for which the passport has to be issued;
or
(ii) if no period either for the issue of the passport or for the travel abroad is specified in such order, the passport shall be issued for a period of one year;
(iii) if such order gives permission to travel abroad for a period less than one year, but does not specify the period validity of the passport, the passport shall be issued for one year; or(iv) if such order gives permission to travel abroad for a period exceeding one year, and does not specify the validity of the passport, then the passport shall be issued for the period of travel abroad specified in the order.
(b) any passport issued in terms of (a)(ii) and (a) (iii) above can be further renewal for one year at a time, provided the applicant has not travelled abroad for the period sanctioned by the court; and provided further that in the meantime the order of the Court is not cancelled or modified;
(c) any passport issued in terms of (a) (i) above can be further renewed only on the basis of a fresh court order specifying a further period of validity of the passport or specifying a period of travel abroad;
(d) the said citizen shall give an undertaking in writing to the passport issuing authority that he shall, if required by the court concerned, appear before it at Page 3 of 4 Downloaded on : Mon May 09 20:18:13 IST 2022 R/SCR.A/3966/2022 ORDER DATED: 04/05/2022 any time during the continuance to force of the passport so issued."
4. With the above, the Regional Passport Officer is directed to process the application filed by the petitioner herein for a Passport and issue the Passport with a validity period of 5 years, in terms of the notification referred to above. This exercise shall be completed within a period of two weeks from the date of receipt of the writ of this order.
5. With the above, this application is disposed of.
Direct service is permitted.
(ILESH J. VORA,J) KUMAR ALOK Page 4 of 4 Downloaded on : Mon May 09 20:18:13 IST 2022