THE HON’BLE SRI JUSTICE P.S.NARAYANA WRIT PETITION NO.27659 of 2007 DATED 18.1.2008 Between Mohd. Fasiuddin. .. Petitioner Versus The Regional Passport Officer. Secunderabad. .. Respondent THE HON’BLE SRI JUSTICE P.S.NARAYANA WRIT PETITION NO.27659 of 2007 ORDER: This Court ordered Notice Before Admission on 26.12.2007 and proof of service is filed. 2. Heard Sri Bajrang Singh Thakur, learned counsel representing the petitioner. 3. The Writ Petition is filed for a Writ of Mandamus declaring the action of the respondent officials in not receiving the application of the petitioner dated 5.11.2007 for correcting of date of birth as 26.05.1975 with that of wrong mentioned date of birth dated 26.5.1969 in existing passport bearing No.F 0897696, valid from 1.10.2004 valid up to 30.9.2014 as 26.5.1975 and refusing to issue fresh passport by correcting the wrong date of birth by asking the petitioner to bring Decree from competent Civil Court of Law as arbitrary, illegal, against the principles of existing law, circulars and pass such other suitable orders. 4. It is averred that the petitioner was born on 26.5.1975 and the same is evident in his SSC Marks Memo issued by the Board of Secondary Education, A.P. after completion of his SSC. It is stated that when in the year 2004 when he was intending to take passport from the respondent and do not know the procedure of obtaining passport and when the petitioner approached an agent for getting the passport, the said agent asked him to sign on some proformas and obtained passport bearing mistake in regard to his date of birth occurred and it was also renewed by a broker at his behest and there was no occasion for him to verify the wrong date of birth. It is also averred that when the petitioner want to go abroad, he contacted another agent in the first week of December, 2007, who asked him to bring his SSC marks card with earlier existing latest passport. When the petitioner verified his date of birth in existing passport with that of his SSC Memo, which contains wrong date of birth and the said agent informed about the difference. Further the said agent informed him unless he get it rectified as in SSC Memo from the respondent, there is no possibility for him to go abroad. It is further stated that immediately the petitioner got prepared application on 12.12.2007 in the name of the respondent, mentioning about his wrong mention of date of birth by the agent without any proof as 26.5.1969, even though his correct date of birth is 26.5.1975 as shown in SSC marks memo, informing that it was not his mistake and the same was the mistake of his agent and wrongly obtained his passport bearing No.F 0897696 valid from 1.10.2004 valid up to 30.9.2014 as 26.5.1975 from the respondent an requested him to issue fresh passport by correcting his date of birth as per his SSC marks memo issued by the Board of Education Department. The officials of the respondent refused to receive the application of the petitioner for correction of date of birth and for issuance of the fresh passport by receiving back his existing passport with wrong date of birth by saying unless he obtain decree from competent civil Court of law, they will not receive his application and will not give fresh passport by correcting his wrong mentioned date of birth as in his existing passport. It is further stated that even though the respondent is empowered to change date of birth in regard to the passport holders who born before 26th January, 1989. If a person who holds a passport with incorrect date of birth on his filing application along with the date of birth certificate issued by the Educational Board or any Certificate issued by the Educational Boards evidencing the date of birth, the respondent is having powers as shown in the Passport Information Booklet as shown in The Passport Rules 1980 at column No.4, Birth Documents at para No.2, sub para (iv) for issuance of fresh passport by taking back the existing passport. It is stated that apart from in the similar circumstances in a Circular dated 18th April, 2001 before the High Court of Judicature of Bombay in Civil Writ Petition No.1072 of 2002, there are clear instructions to the respondent from the Joint Secretary (CVP) & the Chief Passport Officer, CVP Division, Ministry of External Affairs, not to insist for any civil Court decree for change of date of birth in existing passport and this Court also referred and disposed of Writ Petitions as reported in 2007(6) ALD 156 and the same is being followed in number of other cases. Even though the respondent is having powers to do so in law, he do not want to exercise the same with sole intention to harass the petitioner. In such circumstances the petitioner approached this Court by filing the present Writ Petition. 5. The circular dt.18-4-2001 reads as hereunder:- Ministry of External Affairs (PV-I Section) Circular ___/401/2/5/2001 18th April, 2001 As per the current practice, in case of change of date of birth/place of birth, the applicant is required to produce the original declaratory order from a First Class Judicial Magistrate. However in view of the recent Judgment given by the High Court of Judicature at Mumbai in CWP No.1072 of 2000 filed by Shri Jigar Harish Shah, the following clarifications are issued: (a) Where an applicant is seeking rectification/correction of a mistake in the entry on date of birth/place of birth in the passport, PIA may after verifying/satisfying himself, affect the correction treating the same as a technical correction. There is no need for a declaratory order in such cases. (b) Where a competent authority issuing a birth certificate or an educational board registering a date of birth along with place of birth as valid were to issue any correction or amendment. PIA may affect the necessary amendment in the passport without insisting on a Court Order. As per the provisions of Section 21 of the general clauses Act 1997, a competent authority issuing a Certificate could also make necessary amendments to the same. (c) Where the initial entry has been made on the basis of a supportive document issued by one competent authority i.e., School/educational authority and the applicant subsequently requests for a change on the basis of a certificate issued by another competent authority i.e., municipal authorities resulting in conflicting sources of valid proof, the PIA should direct the applicant to obtain a civil order from a competent Court of jurisdiction, certifying the valid date of birth/place of birth. Sd// (Manju) Under Secretary (PV-I) All Passport Issuing Authorities Copy for information to L&T Division, MEA The learned Counsel placed strong reliance on the decision in ALI IMRAN v. REGIONAL PASSPORT OFFICER, SECUNDERABAD[1] wherein the learned Judge of this Court at paras 3 and 4 observed as hereunder:- “Be it noted that under provisions of the Passports Act, 1967, no power is vested in the Regional Passport Officer to correct entries in the passport. However, pursuant to the Judgment of the High Court of Bombay referred to hereinafter, it is now permissible for the Regional Passport Officer to accept applications for rectification/correction. Nonetheless, as per clause (c) above, if an entry had been made on the basis of a supportive document issued by one authority i.e., school or educational authority and subsequently the applicant requests for a change of the entry on the basis of the certificate issued by another authority the passport issuing authority is required to direct the applicant to obtain a proper declaration from the Civil Court. Having regard to the clarification issued by the Government of India, I directed the learned Standing Counsel for Central Government, Sri K.G.Krishna Murthy to produce a copy of the application made by the petitioner for passport in the year 1999. The application is produced before me today. A perusal of the application along with its enclosures reveal that the petitioner enclosed Secondary School Certificate bearing C019604 dated 10-6-1987 which shows his date of birth as 28-7-1992. Therefore, it cannot be said that an error has crept in the passport issued to the petitioner. As the petitioner is now placing reliance on the on the birth certificate issued by the Registrar of Births and Deaths, Municipal Corporation of Hyderabad, which shows his date of birth as 28-7-1975, his case does not fall within the guidelines/instructions issued by the Government of India. If the petitioner is so advised, he may have to approach the Civil Court or the authorities under the Education Act seeking necessary correction of date of birth in the Secondary School Certificate and then approach the passport issuing authority. The petitioner’s application was rightly not accepted by the respondent.” I n Mohd.Narsullah Khan v. Regional Passport Officer, Hyderabad[2] the learned Judge observed at paras 4, 5, 6 and 7 as hereunder:- “In Ali Imran v. Regional Passport Officer, Secunderabad (2003 (4) ALT 474 = 2003 (3) ALD 625, I have considered the Circular dated 18-4-2001 issued by the Government of India in the Ministry of External Affairs pursuant to the Judgment of the High Court of Judicature at Bombay in Civil Writ Petition No.1072 of 2000. The instructions/clarifications issued in the said Circular read as under: (a) Where an applicant is seeking rectification/correction of a mistake in the entry on date of birth/place of birth in the passport, PIA may after verifying/satisfying himself, affect the correction treating the same as a technical correction. There is no need for a declaratory order in such cases. (b) Where a competent authority issuing a birth certificate or an educational board registering a date of birth along with place of birth as valid were to issue any correction or amendment. PIA may affect the necessary amendment in the passport without insisting on a Court Order. As per the provisions of Section 21 of the general clauses Act 1997, a competent authority issuing a Certificate could also make necessary amendments to the same. (c) Where the initial entry has been made on the basis of a supportive document issued by one competent authority i.e., School/educational authority and the applicant subsequently requests for a change on the basis of a certificate issued by another competent authority i.e., municipal authorities resulting in conflicting sources of valid proof, the PIA should direct the applicant to obtain a civil order from a competent Court of jurisdiction, certifying the valid date of birth/place of birth. In view of the above clarifications, I disposed of the said case observing as under: Be it noted that under the provisions of the Passports Act, 1967, no power is vested in the Regional Passport Officer to correct entries in the passport. However, pursuant to the Judgment of the High Court of Bombay referred to hereinabove, it is now permissible for the Regional Passport Officer to accept applications for rectification/correction. Nonetheless, as per clause (c) above, if an entry had been made on the basis of a supportive document issued by one authority i.e., school or educational authority and subsequently the applicant requests for a change of the entry on the basis of the certificate issued by another authority the passport issuing authority is required to direct the applicant to obtain a proper declaration from the civil Court. In this case, the petitioner has produced Secondary School Certificate to prove that his correct date of birth is 1- 4-1976. Therefore, the claim of the petitioner is well supported and squarely falls in Clause (a) of the Circular dt.18-4-2001. Following the Judgment of this Court in Ali Imran (referred above) this Writ Petition is also disposed of directing the respondent to consider the application of the petitioner along with the Secondary School Certificate No.PC/01/0190544/2 PRIVATE, issued by the Secretary, Board of Secondary Education, Andhra Pradesh, Hyderabad, and to pass appropriate orders in the light of the observations made in the above Judgment. There shall be no order as to costs.” 6. In the light of the Circular referred to supra and also the decisions specified above, this Court is of the considered opinion that the Writ Petition be disposed of directing the respondent to consider the application of the petitioner dated 12-12-2007 and rectify the mistake in the date of birth column within a period of four weeks from the date of receipt of this order. Accordingly, the Writ Petition is disposed of. No order as to costs. ________________ Justice P.S.Narayana SSR 18th January, 2008. ISSUE COPY IN A WEEK. (BO) [1] 2003 (3) ALD 625 [2] 2005(1) ALT 95