Passport authorities lack the jurisdiction to determine the right of an accused to travel abroad; if the Trial Court permits renewal under the rules, the passport should be issued for the standard 10-year period, while travel permissions remain subject to Trial Court conditions.

ORAL JUDGMENT

1. Draft amendment is allowed. Amendment to be carried out forthwith.

2. Rule returnable forthwith. Learned Standing Counsel waives service of notice of rule for and on behalf of the respondents.

3. By way of the present writ petition, filed under Articles 14, 19 and 226 of the Constitution of India r/w the provision of Passport Act, 1967 the petitioner has prayed for direction to issue fresh passport to the petitioner for period of 10 years.

4. Learned advocate for the petitioner has submitted that under the prevalent rules of the GSR Notification 570(E) dated 25.08.1993, the respondent authority has to renew the passport of the petitioner for a period of 10 years. He has submitted that the petitioner had applied for fresh passport, however, the respondent authority has not issued the passport for 10 years on the ground of pendency of the criminal complaint against the petitioner.

5. Mr. Pradip D. Bhate, learned advocate for the respondent submits that the passport application of the petitioner is to be processed in accordance with the GSR Notification 570(E) dated 25.08.1993. He submits that the citizens who are facing criminal proceedings have to produce orders from the Court concerned permitting them to depart from India.

6. Heard learned advocates for the parties, perused the documents on record and considered the submissions.

7. At the outset, it is not in dispute that the application of the petitioner for fresh passport is still pending before the concerned respondent authority. The said application is to be processed in accordance with the GSR Notification 570(E) dated 25.08.1993.

8. At this stage, it is appropriate to refer the GSR Notification 570(E) dated 25.08.1993 reads as under:-

“G.S.R 570 (E)-In exercise of the powers conferred by clause (a) of the Section 22 of the Passports 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 offences 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 or a period one year.

(iii) if such order gives permission to travel abroad for a period less than one year, but does not specify the periodvalidity 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 period of travel abroad specified in the order.

(b) any passport issued in terms of (a) (ii) and (a) (iii) above can be further renewed for one year at a time, provided the applicant has not travelled abr