A Srinagar court has cleared the way for the renewal or issuance of a passport to National Conference president and former Jammu & Kashmir Chief Minister Farooq Abdullah for one year, while making it clear that any travel outside Jammu & Kashmir or abroad will require prior judicial approval.
Additional Sessions Judge Farooq Ahmad Bhat passed the order on a petition moved by Abdullah, who sought passport renewal despite criminal proceedings linked to the alleged misappropriation of funds in the Jammu and Kashmir Cricket Association case.
The Central Bureau of Investigation opposed the plea, arguing that the case involved serious corruption allegations and expressing concern that a passport could potentially enable Abdullah to leave the country.
The court, however, noted that although a charge sheet had been filed and charges framed, the order framing those charges and subsequent proceedings had been kept in abeyance by a revisional court through an interim order issued on April 25.
While examining the provisions of the Passports Act, the court observed that the existence of criminal proceedings does not automatically prevent the issuance or renewal of a passport. It also referred to the Supreme Court’s ruling that the right to travel abroad forms part of the fundamental right to life and personal liberty under Article 21 of the Constitution.
The court drew a distinction between possessing a passport and actually travelling abroad. It held that the two are separate legal questions and that appropriate safeguards can be imposed where criminal proceedings are pending.
Accordingly, the passport officer at Srinagar was directed to consider Abdullah’s passport application for a one-year period, subject to the condition that no other criminal case or FIR exists against him that would legally prevent the issuance of the document.
However, the order does not give Abdullah unrestricted freedom to travel. If he wishes to leave the territorial limits of Jammu & Kashmir or travel outside India, he must first obtain permission from the Chief Judicial Magistrate at Srinagar.
The court also warned that the relief granted to Abdullah would stand withdrawn if proceedings before the Chief Judicial Magistrate or the revisional court are subsequently altered or modified in a manner adverse to him.
