PANAJI
The Bombay High Court at Goa has granted the Government of India one week to submit its reply to a petition filed by Adv Aires Rodrigues, who has contested the non-issuance of an OCI card to him.
Adv Rodrigues, who acquired Portuguese citizenship last year, applied for an OCI card after surrendering his Indian passport. However, after several rounds of correspondence, he was informed that his application had been cancelled.
On Monday, Assistant Solicitor General of India Pravin Faldessai requested time to file a reply when the matter was brought before the division bench of the Bombay High Court at Goa.
After surrendering his Indian passport and obtaining a Surrender Certificate along with all other necessary documents, he applied online for his OCI card. However, he was informed by the Foreigners Regional Registration Office (FRRO) in Mumbai that a new rule required six months’ residence in Goa before filing an OCI application.
After fulfilling the mandatory six months’ residence requirement, Adv. Rodrigues reapplied online for an OCI card on 25th January this year. He secured an appointment for document verification at FRRO Mumbai on 5th March, where he successfully completed the process and paid the processing fee of Rs 15,000.
Three months later, on 6th June 2024, Adv. Rodrigues received a brief email from FRRO Mumbai stating that his OCI application had been cancelled under Rule 32(2) of the Citizenship Rules, 2009.
In his petition, Rodrigues argued that the decision by FRRO Mumbai to cancel his OCI application was arbitrary, illegal, erroneous, unjust, and contrary to law.
