Passport Authorities Cannot Insist on Court Divorce Decrees for Deleting Spouse Names in Cases of Extra-Judicial Divorce.

The 1st petitioner sought the reissue of her passport to delete her former husband’s name (the 2nd petitioner) and change her surname following a mutual divorce.

The marriage was dissolved via Mubaraat (mutual consent under Muslim Personal Law) on 09.07.2025

Despite submitting the Mubaraat Naama and an affidavit from the ex-husband, the Regional Passport Officer (2nd Respondent) refused the request, citing a Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) Office Memorandum dated 06.09.2024, which mandates a "divorce decree" from a competent court for the deletion of a spouse's name

The petitioners challenged this insistence as arbitrary, given that Mubaraat is a legally recognized form of extra-judicial divorce

1. Whether the Passport Authority can mandate the production of a judicial divorce decree for deleting a spouse's name when the marriage was dissolved through a recognized extra-judicial mode under Muslim Personal Law

2. Whether executive instructions (Office Memorandums) can override the statutory provisions and instructions contained within the Passport Rules, 1980

Passports Rules, 1980, specifically Schedule III, Section IV(B), which explicitly states that for divorcees applying for the deletion of a spouse's name, "no proof of marriage/dissolution of marriage (Court's order.../decree of divorce), etc. is required"

Division Bench ruling in Asbi K.N. v. Hashim M.U. (2021), which held that a divorce by Mubaraat is complete upon mutual agreement and does not require a court seal for validity

The principle that executive instructions cannot supersede statutory rules

The Court reasoned that Mubaraat is a recognized and valid mode of dissolution of marriage under Muslim Personal Law, and its validity is not contingent upon judicial intervention

While the Passport Authority relied on an Office Memorandum (OM) dated 06.09.2024 to prevent fraud, the Court observed that this OM contradicts the parent statute. Specifically, Section IV(B) of the Passport Information Booklet under Schedule III of the Passport Rules, 1980, expressly dispenses with the requirement of a court decree for divorcees seeking to delete a spouse's name

The Court noted that Schedule III forms part of the statutory rules and therefore holds higher legal authority than executive circulars

Consequently, the Passport Officer’s insistence on a court decree was found to be without legal basis and in violation of the prescribed statutory procedure

The Court directed the 2nd Respondent to process the 1st petitioner’s application for the reissue of her passport by deleting the spouse's name without requiring a court decree, based on the submitted Mubaraat documents. The order is to be implemented within one month