The Rouse Avenue Court in Delhi reserved its decision on Friday on an application filed by Congress leader Rahul Gandhi seeking NOC for the issuance of a new ordinary passport.
After taking note of both parties’ submissions, additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Vaibhav Mehta said on Friday that he would issue the appropriate order at 1 p.m. today. Former Rajya Sabha MP Subramanian Swamy has filed a reply in the Delhi High Court opposing Rahul Gandhi’s plea, claiming that the Applicant (Rahul Gandhi) has no valid or effective reason for the passport to be issued for a period of ten years.
In the reply, it is submitted that “The application is devoid of any merit for issuance of Passport for 10 years”
Advocate Tarannum Cheema appearing for Rahul Gandhi said that there is no condition in the bail orders about the Applicant. “People who have been involved in graver offences have been granted passports for ten years. It includes 2G and Coal scam etc. Issuance of passport for ten years is given as a matter of routine,” advocate Cheema added.
Swamy in reply submitted that the court may exercise the discretion to grant permission after scrutinizing and analyzing all other correlated matters in deciding on the litigation of the Applicant in the broad spectrum of areas of justice and law.
Swamy further stated that at this stage, the NOC for the passport for the Applicant may not be more than one year and may be reviewed annually or as deemed fit by this Court.
“The right to hold a passport, like all other Fundamental Rights, is not an absolute Right and is subject to reasonable restrictions imposed by the Government in the interest of national security, public order, morality, and prevention of crime,” Swamy added.
On May 24, the Rouse Avenue Court ordered Subramanian Swamy to file written submissions by Friday while hearing Rahul Gandhi’s request for a new passport in the National Herald case.
Gandhi had applied to the court for a ‘no objection certificate’ (NOC) in order to obtain a new “ordinary passport” after surrendering his diplomatic travel document following his disqualification as an MP.
Gandhi’s counsel, Advocate Tarannum Cheema, who appeared alongside advocates Nikhil Bhalla and Sumit Kumar, requested the grant of the no objection certificate (NOC), claiming that there are no criminal cases against him.
“The applicant ceased to be a Member of Parliament in March 2023 and as such he surrendered his diplomatic passport and is applying for a fresh ordinary passport. By way of the present application, the applicant is seeking permission and no objection from this Court for issuance of a fresh ordinary passport to him.”
Rahul Gandhi’s lawyers argued that no criminal proceedings were pending and that travelling abroad is a fundamental right. Following his disqualification as a Lok Sabha member, the applicant ceased to be a Member of Parliament in March of this year. In a Surat court, he was found guilty of criminal defamation. He returned his diplomatic passport and applied for a new ordinary passport.
According to Rahul Gandhi’s lawyers, the applicant is seeking permission and no objection from the Court for the issuance of a new ordinary passport to him through the current application.
The lawyer also stated that the complainant’s request to impose travel restrictions was denied in 2015. Furthermore, the applicant has travelled several times without permission since the bail order because no permission was required and there are no travel restrictions.
