NDPS Accused Gets Passport NOC, But Must Seek Court’s Permission Before Any Foreign Trip: MP HC

The petitioner, who was facing pending criminal proceedings under the NDPS Act, challenged the Trial Court’s refusal to grant an NOC for issuance of a passport.

The Trial Court had rejected the application, citing the absence of evidence that the petitioner needed to travel abroad in the near future and the seriousness of the pending case

The petitioner submitted that he had no present plans to travel abroad and undertook to seek the Court’s prior permission if he later wished to do so.

The judgment refers to the impugned order as dated 17.06.2026 in paragraph 1 and 17.06.2025 in paragraph 11.

Section 6(2)(f) of the Passports Act, 1967 provides for refusal of a passport where criminal proceedings are pending before a court in India, subject to the Act’s other provisions.

The Court relied on the Supreme Court’s interpretation in Mahesh Kumar Agarwal v. Union of India, 2025 SCC OnLine SC 2887, which considered Sections 5–10 and 22 of the Act and the Central Government notification dated 25.08.1993 (GSR 570(E)).

That framework permits a person facing criminal proceedings to obtain a passport notwithstanding Section 6(2)(f), subject to the criminal court’s order and the applicant’s undertaking to appear when required; it does not make prior permission to depart India for specified dates a prerequisite to passport issuance.

The Court also recognised that permission to travel abroad may be considered separately, on an application and subject to appropriate conditions.

Applying that framework, the Court treated passport issuance as distinct from permission to leave India.

The petitioner’s lack of an immediate travel plan did not, by itself, justify withholding an NOC for a document principally serving as proof of identity.

To protect the proceedings and ensure the petitioner’s continued presence, the Court allowed the NOC for passport issuance while requiring him to obtain prior permission from the Court before travelling abroad.

Any proposed travel outside India requires a separate prior application to the Court and is subject to conditions the Court may impose.

The petition was disposed of accordingly.