Azka Batool (Minor) Through Father v. Union of India and Anr. (External Affairs)

ORDER

10.09.2025

¶1The petitioner-Azka Batool is a minor girl who, acting through her father-Shri Javid Amin Bhat, has petitioned this Court with respect to the matter relating to amendment/correction of details with respect to her person qua her Passport. The petitioner's mother is Aisha Bano. The parental place of aboard of the petitioner is Boni Bhat, Tarathpora, Trehgam, Kupwara.

¶2The petitioner's parents had applied for her Indian Passport which came to be issued vide No. L 1916449 dated 12.06.2013 with validity period of 11.06.2018. In her said Passport, the petitioner's name came to be referred as AZKA with date of birth mentioned as 31.08.2010.

¶3Upon expiry of the petitioner's said first validity period of Passport the same was renewed from 03.05.2019 upto

02.05.2024 with the details remaining as it is with respect to the name and date of birth of the petitioner.

¶4The petitioner's natural guardian then applied for renewal of her said Passport with a plea that her date of birth instead of being 31.08.2010 is 31.08.2012 as per the statutory certificate issued in terms of the Registration of Births & Deaths Act 1969 read with the Jammu & Kashmir Registration of Births & Deaths Rules 2020 confirming the date of birth of the petitioner being 31.08.2012. In this birth certificate, the petitioner's full name is mentioned as Azka Batool with father's name as Javid Amin Bhat and mother's name as Aisha Banoo.

¶5Since there came to be variance in terms of date of birth as well as the full name of the petitioner, the petitioner's application for renewal of her Passport got held up at the end of the respondent No.2-Regional Passport Officer, Passport Office, Srinagar thereby constraining the petitioner to petition this Court.

¶6This writ petition is disposed of at its very inception stage acting upon the legal principle that a minor cannot be prejudiced in terms of affairs relating to person as well as property, which in the present case relates to the person of the

petitioner, who cannot be attributed any act of omission or commission in the matter of mentioning particulars related to her date of birth as well as full name, and on that principle this Court directs respondent No.2-Regional Passport Officer, Passport Office, Srinagar to consider the statutory birth certificate of the petitioner and accordingly deal with the passport renewal case of the petitioner bearing in mind the fact that even the Aadhar Card of the petitioner bearing No.322980259337 is showing her date of birth to be

31.08.2012 and full name as Azka Batool with her school credentials also bearing the same particulars.

¶7Let needful be done at the end of the respondent No.2-Regional Passport Officer, Passport Office, Srinagar within a period of two months from the date of receipt of certified copy of this order.

¶8Disposed of in terms of the above.

( RAHUL BHARTI ) JUDGE Srinagar

10.09.2025

Muzammil. Q

HIGH COURT OF JAMMU & KASHMIR AND LADAKH AT SRINAGAR WP(C) No.2248/2025 CM No. 5954/2025 Azka Batool (minor) through Father …Appellant/Petitioner(s) Through: Mr. Shabir Ahmad Shah, Advocate. Vs. Union of India & Anr. …Respondent(s) Through: Mr. T.M.Shamsi, DSGI with Ms. Yasmeen Jan, Advocate. CORAM: HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE RAHUL BHARTI, JUDGE