A citizen with a pending criminal case is eligible for passport renewal under the Ministry of External Affairs Notification dated 25.08.1993, provided the court permits, although actual travel abroad remains subject to separate approval from the trial court.

ORAL ORDER

1) Mr. Ankit Shah, learned advocate appears for respondent No.2. Mr.Shah, is permitted to file his appearance during the course of the day. By way of this petition, the petitioner has prayed to permit the petitioner to have his passport renewed for the period of 10 years.

2) It appears from the record that the passport authority cannot renew the passport for more than one year because of pendency of criminal case. It is a matter of fact that criminal case is pending against the petitioner. There is no any scope and chance to conclude the trial in near future and there is no any allegation against the petitioner as to breach of condition imposed upon him. The passport authority is required to look into the notification issued by the Ministry of External Affairs dated 25.08.1993 in this regard, which 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 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 any time during the continuance to force of the passport so issued.”

3 In view of above position and considering the facts of the case, the learned Sessions Court, Dahod is directed to release the passport of the petitioner for the purpose of renewal and Regional Passport Authority shall renew the Passport of the petitioner being No.N4538597 with a validity period of 10 (ten) 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.

4) It is clarified that, as and when the petitioner wants to travel abroad, he shall have to approach the concerned trial Court by filing appropriate proceedings, which shall be considered in accordance with law failing which the learned trial Court shall have liberty to issue warrant against the petitioner to secure his presence during the pending trial.

5) With this, present petition