The High Court of J&K and Ladakh has held that mere pendency of investigation would not give power to the authorities to impound passport.
A bench presided over by Justice Sindhu Sharma said this while allowing a former IAS officer, Sajad Ahmad Khan’s plea wherein he had challenged rejection of his application for release of his passport by Special Judge Anti-Corruption CBI Cases Jammu on September 11, 2021. Khan through his counsel Areeb Javeed Kawoosa had petitioned court with the contention that the order passed by the Special Judge Anti-Corruption CBI Cases Jammu was unsustainable in law and required to be set aside. Khan submitted that he intended to travel abroad for religious pilgrimage.
“The power to impound the passport under Section 10 of the Passports Act is a serious restriction on the fundamental rights of the citizen and order of impounding/suspending passport without sufficient cause or without following principles of natural justice is liable to be set aside,” the court said. Thus, the order of impounding the passport of the petitioner under Section 10(3)(c) has not been validly exercised by him, it added.
Apart from this, the court said that the passport of Khan had been impounded on the recommendations of authorities on the ground of registration of the FIR and the investigation therein which would fall under clause 10(3)(e) that is the matter in which a criminal case is pending. “It is well settled that mere pendency of the investigation would not give power to the authorities to impound the passport under Section 10(3)(e). Since mere registration of the FIR by the investigation agency is also no ground for refusal to issue, renew or impound the passport. It is only upon the filing of a charge sheet and the court taking cognizance of the offence that it may be said that a criminal case is actually pending,” the court said.
While the court set aside the order by Special Judge Anti-Corruption (CBI cases), it directed the Regional Passport Officer to pass an appropriate order either to release Khan’s passport or issue a fresh passport to him after completion of all formalities.
According to Plea of Khan, he is a senior citizen and an IAS officer who retired on March 31 2018 and his passport was seized on October 12, 2021 and he was informed that a case (FIR) was registered regarding issuance of arms licenses by Deputy Commissioners of UT of J&K. During investigation his passport, two mobile phones and other documents were seized by the probe agency CBI. (GK)
