Minor's right to hold passport can't be taken away due to dispute between parents: HC
Bombay High Court has said. The court in its order passed on Wednesday, a copy of which was made available on Thursday, directed the Pune Regional Passport Office (RPO) to issue a passport to the 17-year-old girl within two weeks, observing that the right to travel abroad was a facet of the fundamental right guaranteed in the Constitution.
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The RPO had issued a communication to the girl's mother in November 2024, stating that her passport application would not be processed as her father had objected to the same. As per the plea, the girl's parents are embroiled in divorce proceedings.
In response to the passport office's communication, the girl's mother sent a declaration that the father's consent was missing in the passport issuance form as there was a matrimonial dispute between the couple. The high court said in its judgment that the valuable constitutional right of the petitioner girl cannot be prejudiced, much less be taken away, merely on a communication issued by her father refusing to give his No Objection Certificate (NOC). It said the minor girl was living with her mother and is a bright student having secured outstanding marks in her Class 10 examination. These marks have made her eligible to be selected to participate in a study tour to Japan, being undertaken by her school, the HC added.
«In these circumstances,
