Wife Approaches Supreme Court After American Husband Denied Entry To India

The Supreme Court recently sought a response from the Centre on a plea of a woman, who is an Overseas Citizen of India (OCI), seeking to allow her husband, who is from America, and her son to enter Indian territory.

A bench of justices JK Maheshwari and Sanjay Karol issued notice on the wife's plea challenging the Delhi HC order.

"Issue notice, returnable in three weeks," the court said in its order issued on January 20.

The petitioner has sought to allow her husband and two children to enter the Indian Territory. The Delhi High Court order has directed the Centre to provide the order of blacklisting to the petitioners.

The Central Government has maintained before the Delhi High Court that the husband of the petitioner has been blacklisted from entering the country by the Intelligence Bureau (HQs).

Petitioner's counsel has said that the department does not have any power to pass any order relating to restraining his entry into the country, and therefore the action taken in pursuance of the said order is illegal.

It is further pointed out that the husband of the woman is an Overseas Citizen of India (OCI) card holder.

The petitioner was represented by advocate Varun Thakur. According to the petitioner, the High Court failed to consider that IB is not an adjudicating authority to pass any order restraining or blacklisting the person except to provide the information.

The petitioner said that the High Court is not appreciating the facts that the order passed by the authority did not obey the principle of natural justice, as admittedly, IB has not been given any opportunity for hearing or intimation before blacklisting. Consequently, a woman and her family were forced to reside outside of India and also could not join her family function in Delhi.

The petitioner submitted that the High Court disposed of her petition by order dated January 11, without considering the facts that there is no order able to produce before the Court by the authority, even though the counsel of the respondent mentioned the one-year blacklisting of her husband by the Intelligence Bureau, but the High Court ignored these facts that the husband of the petitioner is an overseas card holder and there is no provision for blacklisting of the OCI card holder.

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