Writ petition challenging the impounding of the petitioner's son's passport based on a pending NIA arrest warrant. The court held that a show-cause notice rendered natural justice satisfied and the impounding was lawful under the Passport Act.
Writ petition dismissed; impugned order of passport impounding quashment prayer refused.
This page shows the compact analysis of this judgement. The full analysis — procedural history, issue-by-issue holdings with ratio and obiter, advocates, and paragraph-level evidence for every claim — is being added to the record in batches and will appear here when this judgement has been through it.
IN THE HIGH COURT OF KERALA AT ERNAKULAM
PRESENT
THE HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE A.M.BADAR
TUESDAY, THE 02ND DAY OF FEBRUARY 2021 / 13TH MAGHA,1942
WP(C).No.852 OF 2021(F)
PETITIONER/S:
YOSAF HAJI PARANCHERI,AGED 66 YEARS S/O ALAVI HAJI, PARANCHERI HOUSE, POOKKOTTUR, VALUVAMBURAM P O, PULLARA, MALAPPURAM, KERALA-673642.
BY ADVS. SRI.MANU TOM SRI.K.R.JITHIN SHRI.BALAMURALI K.P. SHRI.SHAJI T.M.
RESPONDENT/S:
1 REGIONAL PASSPORT OFFICER, KOZHIKODE, ERANHIPALAM POST, KOZHIKODE, KERALA-673006.
2 THE CHAIRMAN MINISTRY OF EXTERNAL AFFAIRS, F-5 STREET G, JAWAHAR LAL NEHRU UNIVERSITY, OLD JNU CAMPUS, MUNIRKA, NEW DELHI, DELHI-110067.
3 NATIONAL INVESTIGATING AGENCY(NIA) KOCHI, GIRINAGAR HOUSING COLONY, GIRINAGAR HOUSING SOCIETY, GIRINAGAR, KADAVANTHRA, KOCHI, KERALA-682020.
R1-3 BY ADV. SHRI.P.VIJAYAKUMAR, ASG OF INDIA
THIS WRIT PETITION (CIVIL) HAVING COME UP FOR ADMISSION ON 02.02.2021, THE COURT ON THE SAME DAY DELIVERED THE FOLLOWING:
WP(C).No.852 OF 2021 2
JUDGMENT
Dated this the 2nd day of February 2021
By this writ petition, the petitioner is praying for quashing the order at Ext.P4 letter dated 14.12.2020 issued by the Regional Passport Office, Kozhikode, thereby impounding the passport of his son in exercise of powers under Section 10(3)(h) of the Passport Act, 1967.
for the respondents opposed the contentions of the petitioner and justified the action of impounding of the passport by contending that Non Bailable Warrant has been issued against petitioner's
WP(C).No.852 OF 2021 3
son and therefore, the authorities are perfectly justified in impounding the passport by following due process of law .
WP(C).No.852 OF 2021 4
Court, Kochi and he will abide by the directions issued by the said court. It is further averred in that reply that the he has been abroad much prior to the alleged issuance of warrant against him by the NIA Special Court, Kochi and therefore the proposed action is invalid and illegal.
'' (3) The passport authority may impound or cause to be impounded or revoke a passport or travel document:-
(h) if it is brought to the notice of the passport authority that a warrant or summons for the appearance, or a warrant for the arrest, of the holder of the passport or travel document has been issued by a Court under any law for the time being in force or if an order prohibiting the departure from India of the holder of the passport or other travel document has been made by any such Court and the passport authority is satisfied that a warrant or summons has been so issued or an order has been so made.''
It is thus clear that Non-Bailable Warrant of arrest issued by the
Special Court, NIA, Kochi is pending for execution and this fact
WP(C).No.852 OF 2021 5
entails the passport authority to impound the passport of the petitioner.
In the result, the writ petition fails and the same is
dismissed.
Sd/-
A.M.BADAR
JUDGE
ajt
WP(C).No.852 OF 2021 6
APPENDIX
PETITIONER'S/S EXHIBITS:
EXHIBIT P1 TRUE COPY OF THE SHOW CAUSE NOTICE DATED 20/11/2020. EXHIBIT P2 TRUE COPY OF THE REPLY DATED 27/11/2020 ISSUED BY THE COUNSEL TO SCN DATED 20/11/2020. EXHIBIT P3 TRUE COPY OF ACKNOWLEDGEMENT CARD RETURNED TO THE COUNSEL DATED 02/12/2020. EXHIBIT P4 TRUE COPY OF THE INTIMATION OF PROPOSED IMPOUNDING OF PASSPORT OF RAMSAN DATED 14/12/2020 ISSUED BY THE REGIONAL PASSPORT OFFICE, KOZHIKODE.
3 issues framed by the court
Whether principles of natural justice were violated by impounding the passport without a personal hearing.
Whether the impounding of the passport under Section 10(3)(h) of the Passport Act 1967 in view of a pending NIA warrant is legally sustainable.
Whether the order signed for and on behalf of the Regional Passport Officer is invalid.
1 provisions across 1 enactments
YOSAF HAJI PARANCHERI
REGIONAL PASSPORT OFFICER, KOZHIKODE
THE CHAIRMAN MINISTRY OF EXTERNAL AFFAIRS
NATIONAL INVESTIGATING AGENCY(NIA) KOCHI
A.M.BADAR
As recorded by the court registry
Judgements on the same questions, provisions and authorities, from every court
