Delhi High Court today stayed a government order revoking Indian passports of the daughters of Devyani Khobragade, an IFS officer and former Deputy Consul- General of India in New York, for having US passports.
Justice Rajiv Shakdher stayed the December 30, 2014 order of Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA), saying it had revoked the passports without issuing a show cause notice or hearing them.
"Did you issue a show cause notice before passing the order of revocation? You can't proceed in this fashion, that you revoke passport without giving hearing or issuing a show cause notice," the court said and added, "in these circumstances, impugned order (of December 30, 2014) is stayed."
The court issued notice to Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) and MHA on the plea by Khobragade's kids and sought their replies by October 8.
Till the matter is pending in court, the children would travel on their US passports and they will be issued visa by the Indian government when they wish to return, the MHA said.
Central government standing counsel Ajay Digpaul submitted that there was no restraint on the kids from travelling or staying in India and they can travel on their US passports.
He also said that Indian law does not permit holding of dual citizenship or two passports and added that earlier the children were issued diplomatic passports which can be revoked without giving any reason.
The court, however, was of the view that the Passports Act does not differentiate between the two.
The passports were revoked by the government on the grounds that the girls, aged nine and six years, had "voluntarily acquired US citizenship" as they had last year travelled there on passports of that country, senior advocate Amit Sibal, appearing for the children, said.
He said their Indian passports were revoked without issuing them a show cause notice.
