Passport News: Mumbai Court Says Renewal cannot be denied on prosecution; Check Out When You Can't Renew

Passport News: A special court here has ruled that merely being charged with money laundering is insufficient justification for refusing permission to renew a passport. This ruling was made while approving the application for passport renewal made by the son of former state minister Anil Deshmukh. Salil Deshmukh filed an application on Wednesday, requesting a directive to the Enforcement Directorate (ED) to return his seized passport so he could apply for a renewal. Special Judge R N Rokade granted his request.

Money Laundering Charges

Salil Deshmukh, his father Anil Deshmukh, a former state home minister, and other individuals have been charged by the ED with money laundering. The ED did not formally arrest Salil Deshmukh in this case. He appeared before the special court in November 2022 after the agency included him as an accused party in its chargesheet, and the court granted him bail. Salil Deshmukh stated in his application that his passport expired in January 2022. He asked for authorization to apply for a ten-year passport renewal.

ED's Objections to Plea

The agency refused to accept the plea, claiming Salil Deshmukh has not assisted with the investigation and that there is a possibility he will flee. It also stated that Salil Deshmukh was being tried for a serious money laundering offence. The court did point out that permission is only being requested for passport renewals, and that Salil Deshmukh has not broken any of the terms set forth by the ED when he was granted bail. It stated that the prosecution had not presented any convincing arguments for rejecting the application.

Legal Interpretation

“Merely being prosecuted under section 4 of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (money laundering) is not sufficient to deny permission to the applicant (Salil Deshmukh) for renewal of the passport,” the court said. An application for a passport renewal may be denied for a number of reasons. These explanations fall into the following general categories:

Incomplete or inaccurate information

Rejection may result from giving false or erroneous information on the application or in the supporting documentation. This includes inaccurate personal information, disparities in address or job details, and the absence of necessary paperwork.

Inconsistencies with previous applications

Red flags may be raised and additional investigation may be necessary if there are discrepancies between the information provided in the renewal application and that in earlier applications or passport records. This includes name, nationality, and marital status changes that are not backed up by the proper paperwork.

Criminal history or outstanding debts

A criminal record or unpaid government debts are grounds for denial of a passport. This is due to the possibility that the government will view you as a security risk or won't be able to grant a passport to someone who owes money.

Failure to complete police verification

When renewing a passport, certain nations demand police verification. Your application might be denied if you don't finish this procedure or if the police report contains any red flags.

Security concerns or national security threats

If the government feels that granting a passport to a specific person would compromise national security or interests, it has the authority to refuse passports. This might depend on a number of things, like engagement in radical activities, espionage suspicions, or other delicate issues.

Damage or deterioration of the current passport

Your current passport might not be able to be renewed if it is destroyed, altered, or has expired. Rather than renewing your passport, you might have to apply for a new one.

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