The Allahabad High Court has set aside an order passed by the Chief Judicial Magistrate of Jalaun at Orai, which had rejected an application for the renewal of a passport solely on the ground of a pending criminal case against the applicant. Justice Saurabh Srivastava, presiding over the bench, remitted the matter back to the magistrate’s court for fresh consideration.
Background of the Case
The case was initiated by Ashutosh Dixit, the applicant, who filed an application under Section 528 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS) before the High Court. He challenged an order dated May 20, 2025, passed by the Chief Judicial Magistrate, Jalaun at Orai. The magistrate’s order had rejected Mr. Dixit’s application seeking permission for the renewal/re-issuance of his passport, which had expired on March 31, 2025.
The rejection was based on the pendency of a criminal proceeding, Case No. 4472 of 2021 (State vs. Ankit Rajawat and others), arising from Case Crime No. 282 of 2020. The charges against the applicant are under Section 298 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and Section 67 of the Information Technology (I.T.) Act.
Arguments of the Parties
Sri Prateek Dwivedi, counsel for the applicant, argued that the lower court had declined the prayer for passport renewal only on the basis of the pending criminal proceeding. He submitted that the court failed to consider the guidelines issued by the Union of India regarding such matters. The counsel further pointed out that the applicant had already been granted bail in the said case by the trial court on November 6, 2024, and was regularly participating in the trial. Consequently, it was argued that the finding returned by the learned court was “not maintainable in the eye of law.”
Representing the State, the learned Additional Government Advocate (A.G.A.) “vehemently opposed the prayer as made in the application, but did not dispute the facts and submissions as made by learned counsel for applicant.” Counsel for the Union of India, Sri Sanjay Dwivedi, was also heard.
Court’s Analysis and Decision
After considering the “rival submissions extended by learned counsel for the parties,” the High Court found the arguments raised by the applicant’s counsel to be justified.
The Court observed that “proper explanation has been sought at the time of adjudication of application for seeking renewal of passport, which has not been considered at that time and as such the impugned order is liable to be set-aside.”
In view of these facts and circumstances, the High Court allowed the application. The order dated May 20, 2025, passed by the Chief Judicial Magistrate, Jalaun at Orai, was set aside.
The matter was remitted back to the concerned court with the direction to adjudicate the application for seeking permission for renewal/re-issuance of the passport afresh, “only in the light of aforesaid observations.”
