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No appeals against return of passports to Coalgate accused

Govt also failed to oppose court ruling in Lalit Modi case
Last Updated 23 July 2015, 19:18 IST

It’s not just in the case of former Indian Premiere League (IPL) chief Lalit Kumar Modi that the government did not appeal against court orders for return of seized passports

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The BJP-led Centre had decided not to appeal in at least three cases, including two accused in coal block allocation scam.

External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj informed the Rajya Sabha on Thursday that Regional Passport Offices in consultation with the Consular, Passport and Visa division of her ministry had the authority to move only up to High Courts to file appeals against lower court’s order for restoration of passports revoked, impounded or seized on request of investigation agencies.

Swaraj has been at the centre of a controversy since last month in the wake of revelations that she had helped Lalit Modi get a travel document from the United Kingdom authorities at a time after his passport had been revoked by India for not complying with the summonses issued by the Enforcement Directorate.

HC order

In a written reply to a question in Rajya Sabha, she noted that the Delhi High Court ordered restoration of impounded passport of Naveen Badri Sriram in November 2012 and for release of seized passports of Prashant Ahluwalia and Anand Jayaswal in February and March 2014.

But the government decided not to go for appeals in all the three cases, just as it was not done in case of Delhi HC’s August 2014 order restoring revoked passport of Lalit Modi. 

The Regional Passport Office in Mumbai revoked former Lalit’s passport in March 2011 following a request from the ED, which had lodged a complaint against him for violation of the Foreign Exchange Management Act. 

Cong questions govt

The Congress party had questioned why the government did not file an appeal against the Delhi HC’s order restoring Lalit’s passport.

Sriram, who promoted Future Metals Private Limited and Future Exim (India) Private Limited, was accused in  the metal scrap scam involving State Trading Corporation Limited.

His passport was impounded in December 2009. Jayaswal, a director of JLD Yavatmal Energy Limited, and Ahluwalia, a director of Kamal Sponge Steel and Power Limited, are also accused in the coal block allocation scam.

The Congress-led UPA was in power when the HC passed the orders for restoration of passport of Sriram and return of seized passports of Ahluwalia and Jayaswal. But by the time the HC gave a similar order in favour of Lalit, a government led by BJP had taken office.

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(Published 23 July 2015, 19:18 IST)

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