The Delhi High Court said on Monday said that government authorities cannot deny passports to Indian citizens who have applied for asylum abroad, PTI reported. The two-judge bench’s verdict came after the hearing of the Centre’s plea against a single judge order quashing its decision to deny passports to three individuals who had sought asylum abroad.

The three appellants said they had applied for political asylum in foreign countries while they were overseas, but were denied passports for five years by different passport offices in India because they “are likely to engage in activities prejudicial to the sovereignty and integrity of India”. The decision to deny passports was based on Section 6(1)(a) of the Passports Act, 1967.

Advocate Abhik Kumar, who represented the appellants, said that his clients were never “part of any conspiracy with groups that sought to undermine the sovereignty and integrity of India”.

Rajesh Gogna, the standing counsel for the Centre, argued that the act of seeking political asylum meant that the applicants vowed allegiance to the laws and Constitution of another country. However, the bench said that “sovereignty and integrity of the country are robust concepts that can withstand the actions of isolated individuals who may seek political asylum”.

“It is clear that the provisions of the Act should be strictly construed as they have the consequence of depriving a person of his essential rights, and such deprivation should not be done lightly, but within the confines of the legislative provision,” the bench said in its verdict.