HC to hear on June 25 Kangana’s plea on passport renewal

The Bombay High Court on Tuesday said it would hear on June 25 a plea filed by actor Kangana Ranaut alleging that her passport is not getting renewed because of a FIR against her.

A bench of Justices PB Varale and SP Tavade was hearing an application filed by Ms. Ranaut contending that the Passport Authority had refused to renew her passport citing the FIR against her and her sister Rangoli by the Bandra police.

The FIR was filed against the duo after Munnawarali alias Sahil Ahsrafali Sayyed, a feature film casting director filed a complaint against them. They have been charged with sections 153 A (promoting enmity between different groups on ground of religion, race, place of birth, residence, language, etc), 295 A (deliberate and malicious acts, intended to outrage religious feelings of any class by insulting its religion or religious beliefs), 124 A (sedition) of the Indian Penal Code.

Senior advocate Rizwan Merchant, for Mr. Sayyed, said Ms. Ranaut’s application did not have any order of the Passport Authority that was being challenged.

Advocate Rizwan Siddiquee, for the actor, said the Passport Authority had raised a verbal objection to renewing Ms. Ranaut’s passport application.

The court remarked that it cannot pass any orders on an oral submission. The application filed by Ms. Ranaut did not place all relevant facts on record, it stated. The Passport Authority had not been impleaded as a party in the case, it noted and adjourned the matter to June 25.

Mr. Siddiquee, however, requested for an earlier date, saying Ms. Ranaut has to travel for shooting a film. The court then said, “It is just a film. The schedule can be changed. First of all, the application is vague. If she [Ranaut] was so vigilant, she could have approached the court with all details in advance. It is just a matter of one week; a film production takes over a year. June 25 is the earliest date we can give.”