Passport authorities cannot unilaterally restrict the validity of a passport to one year for persons with pending criminal cases if the Trial Court has permitted renewal; such passports should be renewed for the standard 10-year period as the power to restrict travel lies with the judiciary.

JUDGMENT

1. RULE returnable forthwith. Learned Standing Counsel waives service of notice of rule on behalf of the respondents.

2. With the consent of learned counsel for the respective parties, the present petition is taken up for hearing.

3. Present petition is filed by the petitioner under Article 226 of the Constitution of India and under the provisions of the Passport Act, 1967 seeking direction to respondent Passport authority to issue passport for a period of 10 years to the petitioner.

4. Heard learned counsel for the petitioner and learned counsel Standing Counsel for the respondents - authorities.

5. 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 as the validity of the petitioner’s passport was expired, the petitioner had applied for renewal of the passport for the period of 10 years, however, the respondent has not renewed the passport on the ground that the criminal case is pending. He has submitted that the petitioner has to travel to abroad but due to non-renewal/issuance of the passport, he is not able to visit. He has, therefore, submitted that appropriate direction be passed since the petitioner is well settled and has no intention of absconding.

6. Per contra, Mr. Pradip D. Bhate, learned Standing Counsel for the respondents has submitted that the passport of the petitioner has been renewed from time to time in terms of the GSR Notification 570(E) dated 25.08.1993. He submits that where the order of the Trial Court grants permission to travel abroad for a period of less than 1 year but does not specify the period, the passport has to be renewed only for 1 year. He submits that in view of said Notification, the passport authorities have issued the passport as per the rules and the prevalent notifications. He submits that, however, there is no restriction on this Court to issue a direction for issuance of the passport for a certain period of validity as per the rules. He, therefore, submits that appropriate directions be passed accordingly.

7. Considered the submissions and perused the documents on record.

8. 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 passpo