The response is notable because the government does maintain and provide other detailed passport-related data. Photo: File/ANI
The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) has said it does not maintain consolidated data on the number of passports issued to non-citizens of India.
The disclosure came in response to an RTI application seeking to know how many passports have been issued under Section 20 of the Passport Act. The Section empowers the Centre to issue a passport to a person who is not an Indian citizen if it considers it necessary in the public interest.
“Such information is not maintained in a compiled or consolidated form,” the external affairs ministry said in its response.
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The first appellate authority also declined to provide the figures, stating that the MEA “does not maintain the requested statistical information (number of passports issued to non-citizens).”
Notably, the government maintains and provides other passport-related data. In a parliamentary reply on February 8, 2024, for instance, it provided figures on passports issued across states and on the basis of gender.
But when it comes to the nationality of those holding passports — specifically, the number of non-citizens who have been issued passports — the government says no consolidated data is maintained
The RTI response follows the MEA’s recent assertion that an Indian passport is a travel document and not conclusive proof of citizenship. This assertion by the MEA sparked debate among public, with some referring to the government's earlier explanation of how Indian passports are issued.
What the government said in 2016
In a parliamentary reply on March 10, 2016, the government was asked whether passports had been issued to people having different names and citizenship details.
The government said, “As per law, Indian passports are issued to Indian citizens after confirming the passport applicant’s identity including name, address and citizenship.”
It further said that whenever cases of suspected foreign nationals obtaining Indian passports were reported, appropriate actions were taken, including revocation of the passports and initiation of criminal proceedings.
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The 2016 response, therefore, signalled that citizenship verification was an integral part of the process of issuing an Indian passport. It also described the possession of an Indian passport by a foreign national as a matter warranting action.
Nearly a decade later, the MEA’s position is being seen as a deviation from the 2016 stand.
From ‘citizenship confirmed’ to ‘not conclusive proof’
On June 24, during the 14th Passport Seva Diwas, an MEA official said an Indian passport is a travel document and does not conclusively establish citizenship.
The statement is legally defensible. Section 20 of the Passport Act, 1967, expressly allows the central government to issue a passport to a person who is not an Indian citizen if it believes this is necessary in the public interest.
This means that the existence of an Indian passport does not, by itself, rule out the possibility that its holder is not an Indian citizen.
While the government, in the RTI reply, said that it doesn't maintain consolidated data regarding number of passports issued to non-citizens, passport data is available in other categories, including state-wise and gender-wise figures.
The apparent shift in emphasis between the 2016 parliamentary response and the latest MEA clarification makes the issue more complicated.
The earlier response stressed that citizenship was verified before an Indian passport was issued. The current position stresses that the passport itself cannot be treated as conclusive proof of citizenship.
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