Former Supreme Court judge Justice Madan B Lokur on Saturday said that the Ministry of External Affairs’ statement that a passport is only a travel document and not proof of Indian citizenship is a “misreading” of the law with potentially serious constitutional consequences, Live Law reported.
Addressing an event in New Delhi, Lokur said that the Passports Act distinguishes between a “passport” and a “travel document”, making it legally untenable to treat the two as synonymous.
Referring to the preamble of the Passports Act, Lokur noted that the legislation was enacted “to provide for the issue of passports and travel documents, and to regulate the departure from India of citizens of India and other persons”.
He said Parliament had deliberately used the terms “passport” and “travel document” separately throughout the law.
“Parliament does not make laws and use superfluous words or words that have no meaning,” Live Law quoted Lokur as saying. “Therefore, when the Passports Act talks about a passport and a travel document, it means these are two separate documents. To say that a passport is nothing but a travel document is a complete misreading of the provisions of the Passports Act.”
Lokur said the legal position should be made clear that “a person who holds an Indian passport is a citizen of...
Read more
-
Govt protecting AIMIM: Union Ministers on Fatima College row
-
Karnataka seer ends 33-day Shivayoga Samadhi in Gadag
-
Jaishankar, Qatar PM review energy, trade, security ties
-
Gavi defends Cristiano Ronaldo from criticism as Spain and Barcelona midfielder praises the Portuguese legend ahead of World Cup clash
-
Manchester United considering move for Chelsea’s Andrey Santos
