ORDER :

The petitioner is the holder of a passport bearing No.L4514956 which is in continuation of his earlier passport bearing J5078902.

2. A criminal case had been filed against the petitioner under Section 498A of IPC read with sections 3 and 4 of the Dowry Prohibition Act and the same was registered as crime No.84 of 2019 in the Disha Police Station, Vijayawada. After the registration of the said crime, the 3rd respondent is said to have seized the passport of the petitioner and forwarded the same to the 2nd respondent for impounding the same on account of the pending criminal case against the petitioner.

3. The petitioner being aggrieved by the said action has approached this Court by way of the present Writ Petition.

4. Sri N. Ravi Prasad, learned counsel for the petitioner would submit that the said action of impounding the passport is not in accordance with the Passport Act. He would point to the section 10 of the Passport Act to contend that none of the conditions set out in section 10 are applicable to the case of the petitioner and as such the passport of the petitioner cannot be impounded. He specifically point to Section 10 (3) (e) which stipulates that the passport of the