IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT MADRAS DATED: 25.02.2025 CORAM :

THE HONOURABLE DR.JUSTICE ANITA SUMANTH and THE HONOURABLE MR.JUSTICE C.KUMARAPPAN O.S.A.No. 30 of 2025 and C.M.P.No. 2893 of 2025 Ganapathi Govindaraj .. Appellant vs

1.Reka Chakravarthy

2.The Passport Authority, The Regional Passport Officer, Chennai.

(R2 impleaded vide order dated 12.02.2025 Made in OSA No.30/25 and CMP No. 2893/25) .. Respondents Prayer : Appeal filed under Order XXXVI Rule I of O.S.Rules r/w Clause 15 of Letter Patent against order dated 17.01.2025 made in A.No.212 of

2025 in O.P.No. 762 of 2024.

For Appellant : Mr.TN.Rajagopalan For Mr.P.Kannan Kumar For Respondent : Mr.S.Rajasekar For Mr.G.Akkash Guru For R1 Ms.P.J.Anitha, CGSC for R2 JUDGMENT (Delivered by Dr. ANITA SUMANTH.,J)

This Original Side Appeal has been filed by the respondent in A.No.212 of 2025 (hereinafter referred to as appellant / father).

2. The brief history giving rise to this matter is as follows. The appellant is married to the respondent. The couple have two minor children, presently aged 4 years and 2 years (collectively referred to as minor children).

3. On account of differences, the couple has been living separately for approximately a year. While so, the mother / respondent in this appeal and referred to either as mother / respondent, has filed a Guardian OP bearing No.762 of 2024 (GWOP), where she has sought permanent custody of the two minor children.

4. The GWOP was instituted in October, 2024 and notice was issued in the first hearing to the father, who entered appearance. The matter was adjourned to 06.01.2025 when time was sought by the father to file a counter. In the meantime, the mother received a positive response to an application filed by her seeking a job in the United States of America (USA) and thus felt the need to travel immediately to avail that offer.

5. Since the passport and OCI cards of the minor children were, according to the mother, in the custody of the father (which fact has incidentally been denied by the father), she filed an application in the GWOP wherein the prayer was for permission to the mother to apply for passport and Visa / OCI cards for the minor children to take them to the USA without the consent of the father, pending disposal of GWOP on the file of this Court.

6. The application was moved as an urgent application during the Pongal holidays. When the matter had come up on 17.01.2025, the Court was informed that notice was taken on the father but since the notice had been served only on 12.01.2025 when the father was in the native place, he had not been in a position to appear immediately at such short notice before the Court during the vacation sitting.

7. It is in the aforesaid circumstances that order dated 17.01.2025 has come to be passed by the learned Judge, who expresses the view that the father was attempting to protract and prolong the urgent applications, which he was not inclined to encourage.

8. Hence, and while impleading the Regional Passport Officer, Tambaram (RPO), represented by the learned Central Government Standing Counsel, the mother was permitted to submit an application for passport and Visa / OCI cards for the minor children to take them to USA without the consent of the father and pending disposal of GWOP on the file of the Court. The newly impleaded RPO was directed to expedite and facilitate the process. It is as against order dated 17.01.2025 that the father has come in appeal.

9. The mother / respondent was represented by Mr.J.Rajasekar, learned counsel, on 12.02.2025, when this OSA was listed for admission.

The following order was passed:-

“Appellant has not filed a counter in A.No.212 of 2025 in which impugned order dated 17.01.2025 has been passed. Hence, he is granted a final opportun-

ity to do so.

2.Learned counsel for the respondent seeks some time to file counter to the stay application. Let counter be filed prior to next date of hearing with a copy served in advance on the appellant.

3.Since we are giv