Passport Application Can Be Made By Single Mother On Behalf Of Her Child; Can't Insist Inclusion Of Father’s Name: Rajasthan High Court
The Rajasthan High Court was considering a petition against the direction asking the petitioner to furnish an undertaking mentioning the name of his father as a condition for passport renewal
Justice Maneesh Sharma, Rajasthan High Court (Jaipur Bench)
The Rajasthan High Court has held that a passport application may be made by a single parent on behalf of her child, and the authorities can issue the child’s passport without the endorsement of the father's name.
The High Court was considering a petition against the direction asking the petitioner to furnish an undertaking mentioning the name of his father as a condition for renewal of the passport.
Referring to Paragraph B, titled 'Other Changes', under Annexure I, 'Simplification of Passport Rules', annexed to the notification dated July 25, 2018 issued by the Ministry of External Affairs, the Single Bench of Justice Maneesh Sharma explained, “It is thus evident that a passport application may be made by a single parent on behalf of their child, and that the name of the other parent need not be printed at the applicant's request. This position, taken together with the fact that the petitioner had already been issued a passport in 2019 without the father's name being printed, warrants renewal of the petitioner's passport on the same basis.”
“A conjoint reading of Clauses 4.1, 4.3, and 4.5 of the Passport Manual, 2020, together with the clarificatory notification dated 28.02.2023, therefore renders the present case a fit one for the issuance of the petitioner's passport without the endorsement of the father's name”, it added.
Additional Govt Counsel Archit Bohra represented the Petitioner, while Advocate Nachiketa Pareek represented the Respondent.
Factual Background
The marriage between the petitioner's mother and father was solemnised in 2010, and the petitioner was born out of the said wedlock. Due to irreconcilable differences, the marriage was subsequently dissolved by mutual consent under Section 13-B of the Hindu Marriage Act, 1955, and exclusive custody of the petitioner was granted to the petitioner's mother. The petitioner's mother, as the petitioner's natural guardian, applied for the issuance of a passport in the petitioner's name under the single-parent category. Pursuant thereto, the passport was issued with only the name of the petitioner's mother endorsed therein.
Prior to expiry of the said passport, the petitioner's mother filed a fresh application for its renewal with an appointment scheduled at the Passport Seva Kendra, Jaipur. The petitioner's file was forwarded to the Regional Passport Office for further processing, pursuant to which the petitioner's mother received a communication issued by Senior Superintendent (Policy), Regional Passport Office, directing the petitioner to furnish an undertaking mentioning the name of the petitioner's father as a condition for renewal of the passport. Aggrieved thereby, the petitioner approached the High Court.
Reasoning
The Bench held that the petitioner’s mother had already furnished both the decree and the declaration along with the renewal application and thus she had already completed the requisites for the renewal of the petitioner's passport. The Bench also relied upon the judgment of the Delhi High Court in Shalu Nigam & Anr. Vs. The Regional Passport Officer & Anr. (2016), wherein it was held that the mother's name would be sufficient in certain cases like the present one to apply for a passport, especially as a single woman can be a natural guardian and also a parent.
“The respondents cannot now, at the stage of renewal, arbitrarily reverse this position and insist upon an undertaking, or inclusion of the father's name, by mechanically invoking the clarificatory notification dated 28.02.2023. Such rigid insistence not only disregards the statutory declaration made by the petitioner's mother in Annexure 'C', but also runs contrary to the flexible, fact-specific approach mandated by the Passport Rules and recognised by various High Courts”, it held.
Thus, allowing the petition, the Bench directed the respondents to process the petitioner's application for renewal of passport without insisting upon an undertaking as to the father's name, and to issue the renewed passport without endorsement of the father's name, subject to completion of the requisite formalities within one month.
Cause Title: Ekang Mishra v. Union Of India (Neutral Citation: 2026:RJ-JP:37212)
Appearance
Petitioner: Additional Govt Counsel Archit Bohra, Advocates Yashwant Singh, Prakhar Jain, Rahul Verma
Respondent: Advocates Nachiketa Pareek, Advocates Manoj Sain, Advocate Hari Om Khinchi