Court directs RPO to reconsider Durai Murugan’s passport application

Justice Pushpa Sathyanarayana on admitting the contentions moved on behalf Durai Murugan that the return of the application based on a criminal case pending against him was improper, as he has already been discharged from the case and what was pending now was a mere revision petition at the court. Durai Murugan had submitted that he was provided with a passport on October 8, 2013 with validity until October 7, 2023.

But since the booklet got fully used owing to his frequent travel to participate in various cultural, social and political programmes, he had applied for reissue of passport on November 9, 2018. But, despite filling all the relevant columns and annexing the requisite supporting documents as sought for, the application for reissue of passport was rejected on the ground that a criminal case pending against him, he added.

The criminal case cited relates to the Rs 1.4 crore disproportionate wealth case filed againstDurai Murugan and his wife under the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988.

Advocate Richard Wilson appearing on behalf of Durai Murugan had contended that the petitioner himself had disclosed the pending revision petition and since no case was pending in any criminal court, Section 6(2) of the Indian Passport Act referred by the RPO to deny Durai Murugan a passport was not applicable.