Amid an ongoing debate over whether passports can be used to verify citizenship, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) on Tuesday clarified that an Indian passport is issued by the government to "regulate the departure" of Indian citizens from the country under the Passports Act, 1967.

MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said the document is issued only after due verification through an established process and noted that less than eight per cent of Indian citizens currently hold a passport.

Jaiswal's remarks come weeks after senior MEA officials, during a briefing on Passport Seva Divas on June 24, described the passport as a travel document rather than a document to prove citizenship.

The clarification was made in response to questions on whether passports could be accepted as proof of citizenship for the Election Commission's Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls being carried out in several states.

Seeking to clarify the government's position, Jaiswal said, "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."

He added that the issuance of passports is governed by the Passports Act, 1967, and the Passports Rules, 1980, and follows a prescribed verification process.

The June remarks had triggered criticism from opposition parties, particularly the Congress, which questioned how a passport issued by the government to an Indian citizen could not reflect the holder's citizenship.

The party had accused the Centre of laying the groundwork to arbitrarily deny citizenship rights to Indians with whom it disagrees.

Reiterating the government's position, Jaiswal said passports are issued after due verification in accordance with the law but pointed out that only a small proportion of India's population currently possesses the document.

Source: India Today