The Allahabad High Court has set aside a trial court order that denied a No Objection Certificate (NOC) to actor-dancer Sapna Choudhary for renewal of her passport, holding that in the absence of any bail restriction or material suggesting flight risk, her right to travel abroad could not be curtailed. The ruling reinforces that passport renewal cannot be blocked mechanically merely because a criminal case is pending.
The dispute arose after a trial court refused to grant Choudhary an NOC required under the Passports Act, citing the absence of details regarding her proposed travel, despite the fact that she was on bail in a 2018 criminal case relating to an alleged show cancellation and faced no court-imposed restriction on leaving the country.
Challenging this refusal, Choudhary approached the High Court, arguing that denial of the NOC effectively deprived her of her fundamental right to travel and adversely impacted her livelihood as a performing artist. The State, however, defended the trial court’s decision by contending that passport renewal is not an unfettered right and is subject to statutory limitations.
Justice Pankaj Bhatia took a clear view that the trial court had proceeded on an incorrect assumption that Choudhary’s right to travel was restricted, noting that neither the bail order nor the record reflected any such prohibition. The Court emphasised that “merely because no documents have been filed, the request for travel abroad cannot be denied,” and reiterated that liberty is “not a gift of the State but its first obligation.”
Drawing from Apex Court precedent, the Bench clarified that pendency of a criminal case is not an automatic bar to passport renewal and that issuance of a passport and conditions on foreign travel operate in distinct legal spheres. Finding no adverse conduct or flight risk, the Court directed the trial court to issue an NOC, enabling renewal of Choudhary’s passport for a ten year period.
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