Passport regulates departure, not proof of citizenship: Centre

A passport is a travel document, not proof of citizenship, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) reiterated on Tuesday, saying it is issued by the government to regulate the departure of Indian citizens from the country. "An Indian passport is a document that, as per the Passports Act, 1967, is issued by the Government of India to regulate the departure from India of citizens of India," MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said during his weekly briefing, in response to a question on the matter. Jaiswal said less than 8 per cent of Indians currently hold a passport, amid an ongoing debate over which documents establish citizenship following the Election Commission's Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls across the country. Also Read | Government says passport is not proof of citizenship. What is? Last month, senior MEA officials had said that while passports are issued only to Indian citizens, the document identifies nationality but does not establish citizenship, and cannot be used as proof of citizenship for the SIR exercise. The remarks drew sharp criticism from opposition parties, including the Congress, which alleged the government was laying the groundwork to arbitrarily deny citizenship rights to Indians it disagreed with. "The issue of passports to Indian citizens or any other individual is governed by The Passports Act, 1967 and Passports Rules, 1980," Jaiswal said, reiterating that less than 8 per cent of Indian citizens hold a passport.