The Kerala High Court has ruled that a passport cannot be denied under Section 6(2)(e) of the Passports Act, 1967, if the applicant's conviction for an offense involving moral turpitude occurred more than five years before the application date.

In a judgment delivered by Justice Gopinath P., the court held that the petitioner, Abdul Azeez K.P., was entitled to have his passport application processed, as his conviction had occurred more than five years prior to his application. “The petitioner is entitled to succeed, as he has not been convicted during the five-year period preceding the application,” the court noted.

The petitioner, a 70-year-old senior citizen, had filed a writ petition seeking directions for the Regional Passport Officer, Kozhikode, to process his passport application. His application had been delayed due to a conviction in the Court of the Enquiry Commissioner and Special Judge, Kozhikode. He had been convicted under Sections 13(1)(d) and 13(2) of the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988, along with Sections 409, 465, 477A, and 120B of the Indian Penal Code, and was sentenced to three years in prison along with a ₹50,000 fine. His sentence had been suspended by the High Court on January 11, 2016. However, when he applied for a passport on December 7, 2024, authorities declined to process his application due to the prior conviction.

The petitioner argued that under Section 6(2)(e) of the Passports Act, a passport may only be denied if the applicant has been convicted for an offense involving moral turpitude within five years of the application. Given that his conviction occurred on December 31, 2015, over eight years before his application, he contended that the restriction did not apply to him.

The court reviewed Section 6(2)(e) of the Passports Act, which requires passport refusal if the applicant has been convicted for an offense involving moral turpitude and sentenced to at least two years in prison within the preceding five years. The court also noted that no government notification extends this restriction beyond the five-year statutory period.

Referring to the Punjab and Haryana High Court’s ruling in Mohan Lal v. Union of India (2023), the court reaffirmed that Section 6(2)(e) applies only when all three conditions are met:

1. The conviction occurred within the five-year period before the application.
2. The offense involved moral turpitude.
3. The sentence was at least two years.

Given that the petitioner’s conviction occurred on December 31, 2015, and his application was filed on December 7, 2024, the court concluded that the restriction did not apply. The court further directed the passport authorities to process the petitioner’s application without considering his prior conviction.

Cause Title: Abdul Azeez K.P. v. The Regional Passport Officer, Kozhikode [WP(C) No. 45038 of 2024]
Appearance:
Petitioner’s Counsel: Advocates Manas P. Hameed, Ipsita Ojal, Rebin Vincent Gralan, Amaljith
Respondent’s Counsel: Senior Panel Counsel T. C. Krishna