New Delhi: The Mumbai Regional Passport Office (RPO) has sought the External Affairs Ministry’s (MEA) nod to prosecute ‘Narmada Bachao Andolan’ (NBA) activist Medha Patkar for not disclosing criminal cases against her in her passport application.
Sources in the passport office said the department had written a letter to the MEA, seeking it go-ahead to file a criminal case against Patkar for concealing the details about many pending cases against her at the time of filing the passport application in 2017.
The officials said her passport has automatically been impounded after she surrendered it December 9, in response to a notice issued to her seeking explanation. However, by surrendering the passport she cannot absolve herself from prosecution, they added.
After receiving the permission, the RPO will file a criminal case against her as per the Passport Act. The maximum punishment under the Act is two-year rigorous imprisonment or Rs 5,000 fine or both.
A complaint was filed against the activist in June 2019 by a journalist, alleging that Patkar had obtained her passport by concealing and suppressing material facts from the RPO Mumbai.
The complainant had provided the details of nine criminal cases with documentary evidence, pending against her in various districts of Madhya Pradesh.
Patkar in her passport application of March 30, 2017 claimed that no criminal cases are pending against her and in the column on pending criminal cases, if any, she declared ‘none’”.
The RPO Mumbai also sought details of pending cases from the Director General of Police, Madhya Pradesh, who confirmed that chargesheet has been filed against her in five cases.
In the show cause notice to Patkar issued October 18 last year, the RPO Mumbai had asked as to why her passport should not be impounded for failing to disclose information regarding pendency of criminal cases against her.
PTI