Srinagar – The High Court of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh has ruled that a person cannot be denied a passport just because their family members were involved in militancy. The court stated that an individual’s right to travel should not be restricted based on the actions of others.
This decision came from a case involving Mohammad Amir Malik, a resident of Ramban. Malik applied for a passport in September 2021 but had his application rejected after a negative police report. The authorities based their decision on the fact that Malik’s brother had been a member of the Hizbul Mujahideen and was killed in an encounter in 2011, and that his father was listed as an overground worker (OGW) in police records.
Malik, who has a diploma in engineering, wanted to travel abroad for better job opportunities. He argued that it was unfair to deny him a passport because of his family’s past. The government claimed that giving him a passport could be a security risk, suggesting he might be influenced by anti-India groups.
However, Justice M A Chowdhary rejected this argument, stating there was no evidence linking Malik to any illegal activities. The court emphasized that a person’s eligibility for a passport should depend on their own actions, not on assumptions about their family.
The court said, “The basis for not recommending the case of the petitioner does not have any reasonable relation or nexus with his own activities.” It also pointed out that denying Malik his rights under Article 21 of the Constitution because of his family’s history was not legally justified.
The court ordered the police to conduct a new verification report that would not consider the actions of Malik’s brother or father. It also instructed the Regional Passport Officer to review Malik’s application based on this new report and to make a decision within two weeks.
This ruling is an important step in protecting individual rights and ensuring that personal freedoms are not affected by the actions of family members.
