The voluntary surrender of a passport, acceptance of surrender certificate, and payment of penalty can be deemed as condonation, leading to the quashing of an FIR under the Indian Passport Act.

JUDGMENT

(Prayer: Criminal Original Petition filed under Section 482 of the Code of Criminal Procedure to call for the entire records and quash the FIR in Crime No.244/2018 on the file of the Inspector of Police, Central Crime Branch (CCB)-I, Team-32, Chennai.)

1. This petition has been filed to call for the entire records and quash the FIR in Crime No.244/2018 on the file of the Inspector of Police, Central Crime Branch (CCB)-I, Team-32, Chennai.

2. The petitioner/accused in Crime No.244 of 2018 for offence under Section 12(1A)(a) of the Indian Passport Act has filed this quash application

3. The gist of the case is that on 02.01.2018, a complaint, received from the Regional Passport Officer addressed to the Commissioner of Police, Chennai stating that the petitioner applied for Indian Passport during 2004 by furnishing her 10th mark sheet, degree certificate and ration card, she had declared in her passport application that she is an Indian by birth. The undertaking given by the petitioner in column 17 of the passport application is “I owe allegiance to the sovereignty, unity and integrity of India and have not voluntarily acquired the citizenship or travel travel document of another country, I have not surrendered or been deprived of citizenship of India. The information given by me is true and I am sole responsible for its accuracy. I am aware that it is an offence under the Passport Act, 1967 to furnish any false information or to suppress any material information with a view to obtaining passport or any other travel document”. Thereafter, on receipt of police verification report on 14.10.2004, Passport bearing No.F1046654 dated 10.12.2004 was issued to the petitioner. The petitioner applied for reissue of passport No.F1046654 dated 10.12.2004 in the year 2014 under Tatkal scheme and thereafter, the same was renewed. The petitioner again approached the passport office in the year 2016 for surrender of Indian Passport, wherein she admitted that for obtaining Indian Passport (for the first time in 2004 and re-issue in 2014), she suppressed her Malaysian nationality and thereafter a penalty of Rs.1,05,000/- was imposed and surrender certificate issued to the petitioner. Recording these facts, a complaint lodged and a case got registered.

4. The contention of the petitioner is that the petitioner was born in Malaysia in the year 1965. The petitioner’s parents are Indian citizens, but at the time of petitioner's birth they were in Malaysia. Petitioner by birth acquired Malaysian citizenship. Thereafter, she moved along with her parents to India. She did her schooling in the year 1981 in India. After completion of schooling, she joined Government Dental College and completed Bachelor’s in Dental Surgery (BDS) course. During the year 1993, she married a fellow Doctor and thereafter, she is living in Chennai along with her Son. In the year 1994, the Malaysian passport was renewed, which got expired in the year 2003. Thereafter, she was advised to apply for Indian passport, since her parents are Indians and she has been living throughout in India except her birth in Malaysia. There is no relationship or connection in Malaysia. Since, she is an Indian in all aspects she applied for Indian passport in the year 2004. Thereafter got renewed in the year 2014. Later, she came to know that holding of two passports is not proper. Hence, she approached the passport authority to surrender her Malaysian passport. At that time, the authorities informed that she cannot surrender Malaysian Passport in India. She can only surrender Indian Passport, accepting the same, she surrendered her Indian Passport, and a penalty was levied. On 29.08.2016, a sum of Rs.5,000/- levied for suppressing place of birth and a sum of Rs.50,000/- for making application for passport by suppression of information about nationality and additional penalty of Rs.50,000/- has been levied for travelling more than 5 times on Indian Passport after obtaining foreign nationality. T