Recently, the Allahabad High Court criticised the slow pace of police verification in passport matters, noting that such inaction directly hampers an individual’s fundamental right to travel. The court cautioned that bureaucratic delay must not become a routine practice unless backed by exceptional circumstances.
The case arose from a petition complaining of a prolonged delay in the processing of a passport due to pending police verification. The court referred to the Citizen’s Charter (June 2025) issued by the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA), which provides that an ordinary passport should ordinarily be issued within 30 working days and reissued within seven working days. However, the period required for police verification is excluded from this timeline, creating uncertainty and delay in the overall process.
The Petitioner argued that the absence of a clear time limit for police verification had led to arbitrary delays, which violated his right to travel and affected his livelihood opportunities. The state authorities defended the delay by pointing to administrative workload and procedural formalities, contending that verification is essential to national security. The issue before the Court, therefore, was whether such procedural delays could be justified when they infringe upon a citizen’s fundamental rights.
The Court noted that the MEA’s timeline lacked a defined period for the police verification stage, which has become a major cause of delay. The Bench emphasised that police verification is an important administrative task and must be conducted promptly and with due diligence. It was observed that unnecessary delay in completing verification creates an obstacle in exercising the right to travel, particularly in cases where passports are being reissued for short durations. The Court also highlighted the need for better coordination between the passport office and the police department to ensure efficient processing within reasonable time limits.
To address systemic delays, the Court directed that all police verification reports for passport applications must be completed and submitted within four weeks. It also instructed that applicants whose passports are delayed due to criminal cases should obtain the necessary no objection, sanction, or approval from the concerned court to facilitate the process. The Regional Passport Officer must inform applicants within a month if their applications cannot be processed, and once the required clearance is received, the matter should be decided within another month.
With these directions, the Court reinforced that administrative efficiency is essential for safeguarding the constitutional right to travel and ensuring that governance serves the citizen, not the other way around.
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