Allahabad High Court overturns Trial Court’s denial of Passport NOC to BBC journalist for reporting on Barabanki Mosque demolition

Allahabad High Court: In an application filed under Section 482 of the Code of Criminal Procedure Code, 1973 (‘CrPC’), praying for quashing of the order dated passed by the Additional Chief Judicial Magistrate, and the impugned order passed by the Trial Court, whereby the application of the applicant for a No Objection Certificate (‘NOC’) for issuance / renewal of a passport has been rejected, a Single Judge Bench of Abdul Moin, J. allowed the application with the following directions:

1. The applicant was directed to file a fresh application for renewal/re-issue of her passport before the competent Regional Passport Officer within 20 days from the date of the order, along with a certified copy of the order.
2. The Regional Passport Officer/authority concerned was directed to consider and decide the application, and to pass an appropriate order for the renewal/re-issue of the applicant’s passport within one month from the date of production of the certified copy of the order, after completing all formalities in accordance with law.

3. The applicant was required to inform and obtain prior permission from the Trial Court concerned before traveling abroad. He was also directed to appear before the Trial Court on the dates fixed, as directed, and to remain bound by any terms and conditions imposed by the Trial Court.

Background

The applicant was a journalist by profession. After obtaining his degree, he worked with various reputed organizations and eventually joined The Wire as a multimedia journalist in 2020. On 17-05-2021, during the COVID-19 pandemic, a mosque located in Ram Sanehi Ghat, Barabanki, Uttar Pradesh, was demolished by the district administration, which claimed it was an illegal structure. The incident led to unrest in the area and was widely reported by media outlets such as The Guardian, BBC Hindi, The Quint, The Lallantop, and ANI.

In this context, the applicant, along with fellow journalist and a logistical team, traveled to Barabanki to report on the event. On 22-06-2021, The Wire published a video news report titled “How a Mosque in UP’s Barabanki was Demolished,” authored by the applicant. Subsequently, on 24-06-2021, an FIR was registered under Sections 153, 153A, 505(1)(b), 120B, and 34 of the Penal Code, 1860. His name, along with four others (including the news portal The Wire), was included in the case, leading to the impounding of his passport and restrictions on his travel.

The applicant’s passport expired on 06-04-2023, and in April 2025, he submitted a fresh application for its renewal. Pursuant to a communication received from the Regional Passport Office, Patna, the applicant filed an application before the Additional Chief Judicial Magistrate, respectfully urging the Court to grant a NOC in support of the passport renewal request.

However, it was submitted that the Trial Court dismissed the applicant’s application without proper application of judicial mind and without taking into consideration the fact that the matter arose from a fresh cause of action, as a new file had been processed by the Regional Passport Office, Patna. The Court also failed to consider the relevant facts and circumstances surrounding the renewed application.

Analysis and Decision

The Court, while examining the present case in light of the principles laid down in Mohammad Ayaz v. State of U.P.¹, observed that in the said precedent, the Trial Court had rejected the applicant’s request for a NOC for the issuance of a passport without considering the relevant Office Memorandums dated 10-10-2019 and 25-08-1993. This omission was held to constitute a patent non-application of mind.

Following this reasoning, the Court held that a similar error had occurred in the present matter, thereby rendering the impugned orders legally unsustainable.

Accordingly, the Court quashed the order passed by the Additional Chief Judicial Magistrate, and the order passed by the Trial Court.

Accordingly, the application was allowed with certain directions.

[Syed Mohammad Seraj Ali v. State of UP, 2025 SCC OnLine All 3332, decided on 05-06-2025]

Advocates who appeared in this case:

Counsel for Applicant :- Areeb Uddin Ahmed,Arpit Verma,Waseeq Uddin Ahmed

Counsel for Opposite Party :- G.A.,A.S.G.I.

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