Chargesheeted Jet Airways employee must get 10-year passport: Bombay HC

Mumbai: The Bombay high court has directed the Regional Passport Authority to renew the passport of a Jet Airways cabin crew in-charge for 10 years, setting aside its earlier decision to renew his passport for only one year on the grounds that he had been chargesheeted in a criminal case.

The court observed that the “passport authority had no right to restrict someone from travelling abroad”. A division bench of Justice V.M. Kanade and Justice Nutan Sardesai was hearing a writ petition filed by Samip Rajani, the Jet Airways cabin crew in-charge concerned, who was chargesheeted under sections relating to the use of criminal force on an on-duty public servant, voluntarily causing hurt to a public servant, causing hurt by endangering the lives of others, and intentional insult with the intent to provoke breach of peace read with common intention. The case is being heard at a Mulund magistrate court.

In his petition, Rajani challenged the decision of the passport authority to issue him a passport only for a year instead of 10 years, as stipulated in the passport Act. Rajani had earlier moved the magistrate’s court to renew his passport, but the magistrate had asked him to approach the passport authority, which, in turn, renewed his passport only for a year. Aggrieved, he moved the Bombay high court, seeking a passport valid for 10 years.

The HC bench on Wednesday directed the Mulund magistrate to decide on Rajani’s application for going abroad, while asking the passport authority to issue passport to him for a period of 10 years.