ORDER:

The petitioners implore for writ of mandamus directing the respondents 3 to 5 to withdraw Look Out Circular (for short “LOC”) issued against the petitioners in Crime No.231/2021 on the file of the Disha Police Station, Nellore, SPSR Nellore District and consequently direct the respondent No.7 to permit the petitioner to travel abroad.

2. Petitioners’ case briefly is thus:

(a) The 1st petitioner is the wife of 2nd petitioner and both of them are Doctors. The 1st petitioner applied to Canadore College, Canada for admission in health care administration and she was granted admission for academic year 2020-21 and while she was planning to leave the country to attend the college, at that time her brother’s wife i.e., her sister-in-law gave a complaint which was registered as Crime No.231/2021 by the police of the Disha Police Station, Nellore against the 1st petitioner’s brother, parents and the petitioners for the offences under Section 498-A, 506 and Sections 3 & 4 of Dowry Prohibition Act. The police directed the petitioners not to leave the Country and available for the investigation. In that view, the 1st petitioner postponed her admission to next academic year i.e., 2022-23 and the college would commence from 02.05.2022 and the 1st petitioner has to report one month prior to opening of the college.

(b) While so, the police completed investigation and filed charge-sheet against the accused Nos.1 to 3 and as there was no involvement of the petitioners i.e., accused Nos.4 and 5, they mentioned the said fact in the charge sheet. Be that it may, since in the passport the name of the 1st petitioner’s father is mentioned, she made an application to the Regional Passport Officer, Visakhapatnam to mention the name of her husband in the passport and paid necessary fee. The said application was forwarded for verification to the Station House Officer, III Town Police Station, Visakhapatnam. There was a delay in issuing verification report in view of the pending investigation in Crime No.231/2021. Even though subsequently charge sheet was filed against other accused, the police did not issue verification certificate and so the 1st petitioner filed W.P.No.7391/2022 against not issuing of passport. By order dated 30.03.2022 this Court directed the Regional Passport Officer, Visakhapatnam to process the 1st petitioner’s application for issuance of passport. Accordingly the passport was issued to the petitioner and while she was boarding the flight, Immigration Officer has refused to permit her to travel on the ground that the respondents 3 to 5 have issued LOC against the 1st petitioner and the same is still in force. Hence the 1st petitioner was restrained from travelling. The issue of LOC is illegal and violative of Article 19(1)(d) of the Constitution of India and it is against the guidelines issued by the Ministry of Home Affairs, Foreigners Division (Immigration Section), dated 22.02.2021.

The petitioners have neither deliberately evaded arrest nor failed to appear before the authorities. On the other hand the police after investigation found that there was no complicity of the petitioners in the offence. Hence the writ petition.

3. Heard Sri O. Manohar Reddy, learned counsel for the petitioners and learned Assistant Government Pleader for Home representing respondents 2 to 6.

4. While severely fulminating the issuing of LOC against the petitioners and allowing its continuation even after filing of the charge-sheet holding that there was no complicity of the petitioners in the alleged offences, learned counsel for the petitioners referring to the judgment in Sumer Singh Salkan v. Assistant Director’s case in W.P.(Crl.) No.1315/2008 and Crl.Ref.1/2006 of High Court of Delhi, argued that in the said judgment it was clearly held that recourse to the LOC can be taken by investigating agency in cognizable offences under IPC or other penal laws where the accused was deliberately evading arrest or not appearing in the trial Court despite NBWs