In a landmark ruling, the Gujarat High Court allowed the renewal of passports of two minor children without requiring consent or a no-objection affidavit from their estranged father.
The decision provided significant relief to their divorced mother and single parents in general.
what is it about
According to a Times of India report, a woman from Vadodara has approached the court after the Regional Passport Office (RPO) in Ahmedabad denied the renewal of her children’s passports.
She said she urgently needed to renew her child’s passport because her elder daughter was scheduled to take the Scholastic Assessment Test (SAT), which is mandatory for pursuing higher studies in the US, on November 8.
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However, the RPO insisted in its communication that an affidavit of the children’s father without objection is necessary to renew the children’s passports.
The woman claimed that she and her estranged husband entered into a memorandum of understanding (MoU) upon their divorce in March 2022, which stipulated that the children would stay with her.
According to the memorandum of understanding, the father agreed to cooperate in legal matters, including providing “no objection” to the issuance of identification documents. However, at this stage, she said, it was not possible to secure his consent.
The woman said refusing to renew her passport because of her estranged father’s disapproval would cause “irreparable loss” to her daughter, who would miss her chance to sit the SAT and apply to universities abroad for the upcoming academic year.
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What did Gujarat HC say?
According to a TOI report, the central government did not oppose the woman’s petition.
Gujarat HC Justice LS Pirzada cited Section 4(3) of Schedule II of the Passport Rules, 1980, which requires the consent of one parent if the parents are separated but not formally divorced or on the basis of a court order.
He also noted that there is a judgment of divorce in this case and the memorandum of understanding states that the children are in the custody of the mother. He subsequently directed the RPO to renew the passports of both the minors “within a week at best”.
“Respondent No. 1 – Authority (RPO) is directed to consider the application dated July 11, 2025, preferred by Petitioner No. 3 as a single parent, and renew the passports of both the minor petitioners as expeditiously as possible, preferably within one week from the date of receipt of this order,” the resolution read.
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What are the rules for excluding the name of the father/mother in the passport of a minor?
According to the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA), in the case of a minor under the care of one parent requiring exclusion of father/mother’s name:
1. The online passport application form now allows the applicant to enter the name of the father or mother or legal guardian, i.e. only one parent, not both. This would allow single parents to apply for passports for their children and have a passport(s) issued where the name of the father or mother is not required to be printed at the request of the applicant.
2. In the case of minor children of a single, single parent, the name of the father or mother is not indicated in the application for a passport and in the passport. In the case of unmarried parents submitting Schedule 12, the names of both parents must be given on the application form and in the passport.
3. In the case of minor children of married parents, the name of the father/mother shall be provided by the other single parent who has custody of the child, regardless of their marital status, e.g., divorced, pending divorce, separated or abandoned, with or without contact rights with the estranged parent.
