Passport
Sunil
(Querist) 05 December 2014
This query is : Resolved
One of my friend staying in Mumbai and having some queries regarding his child’s passport. If somebody can give him proper guidance /advice, he will be very grateful. Brief history about him with his queries are as follows.
My friend was staying in outside Mumbai region, i.e. in thane region. Two years ago, he got married with one divorcee lady having 2 Childs from her ex-husband. During her divorce, as per her petition, she claimed for younger child (10 years old at divorce time) to be with her with full responsibility. As per passed judgment and decree, older child (12 years old at divorce time) shall be with retained with her ex-husband and younger child custody is given to her. The divorce was processed in thane court.
After six month of having divorce judgment and decree, she got married with my friend. The court marriage was done in thane district. With well aware of the responsibility of her existing younger child from her ex-husband, my friend accepted them both (lady as well as her younger child). My friend has requested one of the agent to carry out procedure for pass gazette to change their names as well. Gazette copy for change of name for both are available with them now.
My friend is then shifted to Mumbai region and presently staying in Kandivali area on leave and license basis since last 1 ½ years. Within this year, they got new kid.
Now my friend is recently deputed to overseas through their company. He was having his existing valid passport. Company has sent him to gulf country for longer duration. He demanded family status to company and the same is accepted.
Now the real problem started.
His wife and her earlier child was not having any passport earlier. Somehow, my friend could manage to apply for passport for his wife and their new born baby. The application is under process.
But, as far as his wife’s earlier child is concern, he is very much confused as he did not received any clear cut advice or information to process his passport. Moreover, different agents are having different opinions and requirement of different documents to take up his application to process. In this situation, can somebody advice how to get the kid’s passport having his new name on passport and my friends name as father on passport?
Some of the details about the kid are as follows.
1. Change of name gazette copy is available
2. Based on gazette copy, their marriage certificate and divorce papers, they could change the name of kid in school register
3. Change of name is also done for his Aadhar card with present residential address
4. His original birth certificate is available with his real father name on it
Your advice will help him to be with his family.
Regards,
Devajyoti Barman
(Expert) 06 December 2014
tHE PASSPORT AUTHORITY SURELY WOULD ASK FOR PERMISSION OF HIS BIOLOGICAL FATHER WITHOUT WHOSE SIGNATURE HIS PASSPORT CAN NOT BE ISSUED.
nAME CHANGE WITHOUT PERMISSION OF HIS BIOLOGICAL FATHER IS ALSO NOT PERMISSIBLE.He has now every right to make issue out if it and file necessary civil suit.
P. Venu
(Expert) 06 December 2014
Perhaps, the easy and obvious solution could be in the mother applying for the passport as the minor's guardian.
Rajendra K Goyal
(Expert) 06 December 2014
Your friend should adopt the son through legal process with the consent of his biological parents and can proceed.
passport can not be applied without the consent of biological father. Even name can not be changed without consent of biological father.
ajay sethi
(Expert) 06 December 2014
agree with experts . consent of biological father is necessary for change of name .
Sunil
(Querist) 06 December 2014
Thanks to all for their valuable reply.
However, we feel the query is still open as there is no solution as such found from the received replies.
Can somebody suggest the path forward for following issues?
We appreciate the replies received from experts and respect the Law and judisiary system of India. However, we need to understand following points as well.
Presently, there is no official or legal consent available from child’s real father. All can imagine that after 2 years of span, no person can give such type of written consent for his ex-wife or his child. Considering human psychology, it is next to impossible as the ex-husband was very careless, rude and nasty about his wife and childrens.
Since last 2 years, both parties do not know about each other’s life even. If my friend and his wife approach to him, his ego may come across for not giving any type of consent for his child as he will not be bothered about his ex-wife, her new husband and his own child’s future. Instead, he may try to take disadvantage of my friend’s society reputation.
In this situation, is there any other way, where we can avoid real father’s consent or permission?
We have re-open the query as there is no solution available in the replies for living my friend with his family including the said child. One has to really appreciate his willingness to keep his wife’s earlier child with him and he feels very much responsible for making that child’s future along with their own child.
We will appreciate for positive reply on the above.
Thanks in advance.
Meantime, we are wondering how it is done in foreign countries where man and woman are frequently changing their spouse and keeps their childrens with them with step fathers / mothers. We feel that those counties will definitely have such type of provision without any complication. Therefore, it is not difficult to do so in foreign countries. But, what we understand that similar culture is also percolated in India as well, not to that extent. But, still there would be lots of cases. How they have been treated.
T. Kalaiselvan, Advocate
(Expert) 09 December 2014
first of all you are an Indian so respect Indian Laws till your last breath. You cannot bend the law in your favor. Your question is absurd. If the law has been framed it is the duty of every citizen to respect it and abide by it. This law is applicable to entire population of the country hence do not raise silly objections to the law or find fault in Indian law comparing the same to some foreign country law. Every country has it own law and the people of those countries respect and live as per the law of their land. Not only you, many people here in India have made it a habit of finding only faults at Indian laws if they do not suit their taste when compared to the conveniences. The experts have given proper opinion which is within the frame work of the law of our mother country that firstly the name of child cannot be changed without the consent of its biological father, secondly, there is a procedure called adoption with the consent of the biological parents, without which your friend will not be considered as the child's father, he will remain his mother's husband, as far as passport is concerned, the child's biological father has to give consent or otherwise the mother of the child can apply for the minor child's passport on the basis of her legal divorce from a court of law and the custody of the child in her favor through the impugned judgement which will be another option. If you are not still satisfied, you may call on the passport office personally and clarify the further details, but remember, born an Indian, be proud of it always.
P. Venu
(Expert) 09 December 2014
The passport rules at https://portal2. passportindia.gov.in/AppOnlineProject/pdf/Passport_Rules_1980.pdf provides that the Mother can very well apply for the passport. The problem, it appears, is that the queriest and his friend are relying on the agents than verifying the facts themselves.
Sunil
(Querist) 09 December 2014
Mr. T. Kalaiselvam,
Thanks for your reply and appreciate for your love and passion towards our great country, India. We respect your feeling towards Indian laws. If you carefully refer our message, we have spelled out that we respect of Indian laws and judiciary system. We have never challenged or compared our laws with other countries. On contrary, we were interested to know for similar situation where re-marriages are taken place, what is done in India for the child’s future?
We have elaborated the present situation of child’s real father that he would not be interested to give any consent. However, my friend’s intention is still positive to accept the child, keep with him and make his good future.
My friend is at overseas to make money so that his family future including that child can be brighter. But, this is not over night show. To do so, he may have to stay overseas at least 4-5 years to make stronger financial position. For this 4-5 years, he cannot stay without his wife and own child. He was willing to take all three of them. But, with present scenario, he may have to make arrangement of that child, may be to at some relative or boarding school. We know this will be very hard decision for my friend, his wife as well as for that child. No doubts, there will huge pain for that child as well as his mother & my friend as well.
With great respect towards Indian laws and your suggestions, it seems there is no path available for him, without involvement of child’s real father. In short, there is no provision in Indian Law for living together for such type of families. We understand with great regret that this query is resolved forever.
Mr. P Venu,
Many thanks for your co-operation and helping nature. Just to clarify, when there is no clear cut information available on website for exactly matching situation, people takes advice of agents, considering that agent is the person who handles different type of cases which may not be even listed under FAQ of authorized website. People starts believing agent when they get references from other friends that the agent has completed the task without having any issues. Anyways, for application by mother for child as legal guardian, we would like to throw some light on the issue.
My friend is in Gulf country recently joined one of the company. Company is ready to provide family visa based on their employee’s name and not based on his wife’s name. To process visa, company / consulate need passport copy of the each family members who wish to migrate. Family members means, wife and maximum of two kids. In this case, if mother applies for child’s passport as guardian, we feel that my friends name will not appear as “father name” in child’s passport. This situation will lead to rejection of visa for child by company / government as there will be no relationship proof (Father –Son) for child and my friend. So this way also, we will not be able to proceed. Anyways, thanks to all for their kind advice.
T. Kalaiselvan, Advocate
(Expert) 10 December 2014
If your friend is ready to comply with the rules and laws of a foreign company/country, why is he hesitating to abide by the Indian laws in this regard? Anyway option before you is open to choose or close.
T. Kalaiselvan, Advocate
(Expert) 11 December 2014
For the information of the author recent judgement by Mumbai High court on the topic" Child of unwed mom must name dad in the passport reported in the Time of India, Mumbai edition dated 1th Nov 2014 is reproduced below which almost replies your query:
MUMBAI: An unwed mother has to reveal who the biological father of her child is, the passport authorities told the Bombay high court on Wednesday.
The ministry of external affairs had clarified on November 1 that an unwed mother need not disclose the name her child's father. The contradiction was reflected in reply to a petition filed by four-year-old Lisa (name changed) through her mother who was working in a club and unmarried when she was born to include her stepfather's a name in her passport.
The assistant regional passport officer (policy) on November 3 insisted that her biological father's name must be mentioned. Her petition urged for direction to the officer to process her application by mentioning her stepfather's name and to issue her a passport.
Advocates Nikhil Karnavat and Viraj Maniar told a division bench of Justices V M Kanade and Anuja Prabhudessai that this was a similar matter (like those heard recently by court) for getting a stepfather's name inserted in the passport. The judges told the Union's government advocate, Soma Singh, appearing for the MEA and regional passport authority, to take instructions from the MEA. But Singh volunteered, "An unwed mother has to fill a form in which the biological father's name has to be written. The petitioner wants the passport to be issued in her stepfather's name." She added, "I will take instructions."
The judges posted the next hearing after two weeks.
Lisa's petition said her mother Larisa Mathews (name changed) worked in the club to support her family. At the club, she came in contact with Suneel Thakkar (name changed), who lured her into a relationship by promising marriage. Lisa was born on November 19, 2010, but when Larisa insisted on marriage, Thakkar cut off contact. She subsequently learnt he was already married and had a child.
So disassociated herself from him and took care of her child with her savings, and help from relatives and friends. Larisa later met Atul Sethia (name changed), who unconditionally accepted her and married her in November 2011. The couple had a son recently. "The petitioner is being looked after with utmost love, care and affection, and is experiencing a family atmosphere staying with her stepfather," said the petition, adding that society at large had accepted Lisa as his daughter.
Thakkar filed a plea in the family court seeking Lisa's custody in January 2012 but the HC admitted Larisa's plea challenging it and stayed access to him. Lisa's plea said Thakkar never married her mother although his name was in hospital records and the birth certificate. It said disclosure of her biological father's name in the passport would cause "trauma and social stigma to the minor".
In a related development, Disha Mhaiskar, 19, and Sania Akram, 21, (names changed) who moved court separately, received their passports on Wednesday with their stepfathers' names included. They had to submit affidavits that they do not want their biological fathers' names on the passports and request insertion of the stepfathers' names. They also had to state that in the event of a court case, the onus "will be on me and not on the passport-issuing authority".
Slot for dad's name can be blank: MEA
MEA clarified a statement by another of the Union government's advocate, in a related passport case, that an unwed mother had to file an affidavit stating "how she conceived", "if she was raped" and why she did not want the child's father's name included. But following a TOI report, MEA clarified on November 1 that an unwed mother had to only produce the birth certificate and submit an affidavit declaring that she was the mother of the child passport applicant. Also, in the affidavit, the space for the father's name and space seeking to know if the father/mother of the child had "deserted" her, could be left vacant.
Sunil
(Querist) 11 December 2014
Mr. T. Kalaiselvan
Many thanks for sharing this valuable information.
We feel based on this informaiton, there is little hope for my friend to be with his whole family. We have some queries regarding this. We request you to clarify so that we can move ahead with appropriate path.
1. As far as Disha Mhaiskar (19) and Sania Akram (21), they are not minors. Therefore, they could have submitted their affidavits as an applicant. In my friend’s case, child is 12 years old, i.e. minor. Can minor submit an affidavit saying “He do not wish to have his biological father’s name in passport and want to have his stepfather’s name”.
2. Could you provide us format of affidavit?
3. This affidavit has to be notarised or any other formalities are required?
4. This has to be done on stamp paper?
5. Do we need to meet Passport officer before putting official application of child? Can we give reference of this case to passport officer?
6. Do we need to go with some petition?
We will be very grateful to have above information.
Meantime, we would like to clarify that my friend has left the country just to make his family’s future bright and strong. He is still proud to be an Indian and would like to be Indian till his last breath.
Thanks in advance.
P. Venu
(Expert) 11 December 2014
Is your friend really interested in getting the passport? Has he or his wife applied for it and is facing the hassles, as suggested?
Pl. note that procedures are like swimming - you cannot handle them theoretically. You should take the plunge and face the uncertainties that is inherent in implementation of even the best of the road maps.
T. Kalaiselvan, Advocate
(Expert) 11 December 2014
@Author: for further issues, you may follow the advise of expert Mr. P.Venu in his latest reply.
