Passport row: Inter-faith couple 'did not live in Lucknow for a year'

The Uttar Pradesh Police on Tuesday said that Tanvi Seth, who earlier accused a passport official of humiliating her inter-faith marriage during the passport issuing procedure, had not been living in Lucknow for the past one year.

In a press conference, Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Deepak Kumar said the verification report sent to the Regional Passport Office (RPO) shows that Seth has been living in Noida, but she gave a Lucknow address for verification.

Kumar also pointed out that as per rules, an applicant should be residing at the address filled in the application form for at least one year.

"In the police investigation, it was found that Tanvi was not living here from the past one year. We have sent the report to the regional passport office. The investigation will now be taken forward by the passport office. Our work is to do verification at each and every point. We have sent the report with full facts," Kumar said.

Meanwhile, regional passport officer Piyush Verma said he has received the report from police however he is yet to take an action against the couple.

"Police has submitted its report, we will go through it. No action has been taken yet," Verma said.

The couple had alleged that passport department official Vikas Mishra asked the husband to convert to Hinduism and pulled up the wife for marrying a Muslim when they went there to file passport applications.

When asked whether police would take any action against the couple, the SSP said, "We have to submit verification report on six-seven points only. We have sent our report. Now, the RPO will take the appropriate decision."

The matter came to the limelight on June 21 when Tanvi Seth and her husband Mohammad Anas Siddiqui alleged that they were harassed by an officer at a Lucknow passport office, as the former was married to a Muslim and did not change her name.

Seth said the officer questioned her marital status and spoke to her rudely. She also claimed that others in the passport office did not even react to his "rude demeanour."

Meanwhile, her husband stated that he was told to change his religion and take "pheras."

A day later, the regional passport office in Lucknow transferred the officer, named Vikas Mishra and issued passports to the couple.

The couple also wrote about their ordeal on Twitter and tagged External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj.