Mehbooba Mufti's daughter challenges conditions on passport issued by MEA

Iltija Mufti, the daughter of PDP chief Mehbooba Mufti, has taken legal action against the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) over the conditions imposed on her recently issued passport. The Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh High Court have served notice to the authorities in response to Iltija's plea, which contests the limitations placed on her travel abroad.

Last month, Iltija (35) was granted a "country-specific passport" valid for two years, allowing her to pursue studies in the United Arab Emirates. This conditional passport was issued following her appeal to the High Court in February after her initial passport application faced rejection due to an adverse report from the Jammu and Kashmir Police's Criminal Investigation Department (CID).

Despite applying for a fresh passport on June 8, 2022, as her previous one was set to expire on January 2, 2022, Iltija approached the Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh (JKL) High Court once again to challenge the imposed conditions.

In her plea, Iltija alleges that the "arbitrary restriction" on her passport decision "suffers from the vice of unreasonableness."

The High Court's notice to the authorities signifies a significant legal development in the ongoing dispute over Iltija Mufti's passport, raising questions about the validity and fairness of the conditions imposed by the Ministry of External Affairs.

"The decision to restrict the period of duration of the passport for two years only with an endorsement/order that the passport is valid for the United Arab Emirates only is an arbitrary restriction on the right of the petitioner to travel. The decision suffers from the vice of unreasonableness. It is not comprehensible that on one hand, the petitioner has been issued a passport, which clearly indicates that there are no grounds in law available to refuse the issuance of a passport, but despite it being so, the passport is valid only for the United Arab Emirates," said the plea.

"The impugned decision as such does not infuse reasonableness and is wholly arbitrary and thereto in law is not sustainable and is required to be declared as ultra vires the fundamental rights as guaranteed to the petitioner under Article 21 of the Constitution of India, and the respondents are required to be directed to issue a passport without any endorsement and to be valid for a period of 10 years," she added.

"The right to travel abroad inheres in the right to life and liberty as guaranteed under Article 21 of the Constitution of India. The expression 'personal liberty' in Article 21 of the Constitution takes in the right to travel abroad. This right cannot be curtailed except in accordance with the procedure established by law. The whims and caprices of authority have no role to play in it," she further said.

After considering the arguments presented, Justice Sanjay Dhar of the JKL High Court issued a notice to the authorities involved in the passport case. The court directed them to submit their response within a period of two weeks.

The case will be heard again on July 19.