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New Passports To Be Single Parent Friendly, Will Not Be Proof Of Address

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New Passports To Be Single Parent Friendly, Will Not Be Proof Of Address

India will soon have passports which do away with mandatory mention of father’s name in passports and, with the last page removed, will also stop serving as valid proof of address, announced the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA).

The new passports will no longer have the last page of the passport that contains information such as names of father or legal guardian, mother and spouse, as well as address, although these details will have to be mentioned in passport applications. The information will still be stored in the system of the external affairs ministry, so it will not affect the government.

The decision, announced by External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Raveesh Kumar on Friday, came on recommendation made by a three-member committee comprising Ministry of External Affairs and Women and Child Development Ministry officials, that .

The decision follows the report of a three-member committee of the MEA and the Women and Child Development (WCD) ministry that examined calls for doing away with the father’s name in the passport.

Kumar said at a weekly press briefing on Friday: “The Ministry has examined the recommendation of the Committee in consultation with the various stakeholders, examined the guidelines of the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) regarding Machine Readable Travel Documents and decided that the last page of the passport and other travel documents issued under the Passports Act, 1967 and Passport Rules, 1980, would no longer be printed.”

The MEA is also considering changing the colour of passports. As of now, passports are issued in three colours – white for government officials or people who visit other countries for official work of the government, red coloured passports are issued for diplomats, and blue for everyone else. Even under the blue passports are two sections – those who require an emigration check (ECR) and those who do not (ECNR).

The MEA is considering issuing orange-coloured passports for people who are issued ECR passports. The idea behind this is to make the process of emigration faster.

Passport holders with ECR (Emigration Check Required) status would be issued a passport with orange passport jacket and those with non-ECR status would continue to get a blue passport, said the spokesperson.

“Till such time the new passport booklets are designed, manufactured and made available to the Ministry by ISP (Indian Security Press), Nashik, the passports and other travel documents would continue to be printed with the last page,” MEA said.

All current passports will continue to be valid, even once the new series of passports are issued, up till their expiry date.

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Death threat to Yogi Adityanath: 24-year-old woman arrested for threatening Uttar Pradesh CM

“The woman is well qualified but is mentally unstable,” the police said.

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The Mumbai police have arrested a 24-year-old woman, Fatima Khan, on Sunday for allegedly sending a death threat to Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath.

Khan, who has a Bachelor’s degree in Information Technology, lives with her family in the Ulhasnagar area of the Thane district in Maharashtra; her father works in the timber business.

According to police, while she is well-educated, she is reportedly mentally unstable. “The woman is well qualified but is mentally unstable,” the police said.

The threat was communicated through a message received on the Mumbai traffic police’s WhatsApp number, warning that if Adityanath did not resign from his position within 10 days, he would face a fate similar to that of NCP leader Baba Siddique.

Following the investigation, police traced the message back to Khan.

The Mumbai Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS), in collaboration with Ulhasnagar police, successfully located and detained her.

Authorities are continuing their investigation into the incident. With Adityanath expected to visit Maharashtra to campaign ahead of the November 20 state Assembly elections, police have increased security measures.

Notably, former Maharashtra Minister Baba Siddique was shot dead in Bandra, Mumbai, on October 12.

A few days earlier, a 20-year-old suspected caller was arrested today in Noida for threatening Baba Siddique’s son, Zeeshan Siddique and Bollywood actor Salman Khan.

According to reports, the suspected caller, identified as Mohammad Tayyab alias Gurfan, also demanded ransom from Zeeshan Siddique and Salman Khan. The 20-year-old was arrested in Noida’s Sector 39 area and the Mumbai Police brought him to the city on a transit remand.

In another threat, Mumbai Police had arrested Shaikh Hussain Shaikh Mausin, a 24-year-old vegetable seller from Jamshedpur, over a threat message received by Mumbai traffic police’s WhatsApp helpline.

Reportedly, a threat message demanding Rs 5 crore from Salman Khan was received on the Mumbai Traffic Police’s WhatsApp helpline, prompting the police to file a case and launch an investigation. 

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RJD slams PM Modi over his unfulfilled promise to revive Bihar sugar mills

She sarcastically asked, “Why did he not fulfill his own promise? Has he developed diabetes?”

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The RJD on Saturday slammed Prime Minister Narendra Modi over his unfulfilled promise to revive sugar mills in Bihar and wondered whether the Prime Minister has given up on his promise because of diabetes.

RJD MP Misa Bharti humorously remarked on PM Modi’s unfulfilled commitment to enjoy tea sweetened with sugar from Bihar’s sugar mills, which have remained inactive for many years.

Bharti, the eldest daughter of RJD leader Lalu Prasad, asserted that the sugar industry in Bihar has not been revived so far and questioned whether Modi had abandoned his promise due to diabetes.

“The PM is enjoying his third consecutive term in office and has not fulfilled any of the promises he made before ascending to power,” she stated, emphasising her disappointment as a resident of Bihar who recalls Modi’s grand declarations about revitalizing the state’s sugar mills.

She sarcastically asked, “Why did he not fulfill his own promise? Has he developed diabetes?”

Responding to media inquiries, Bharti also dismissed the concept of “One nation one poll” as a “shigoofa” (gimmick) from the Modi government, arguing that they struggle to conduct elections in four states simultaneously, let alone nationwide.

Her comment referenced the Assembly elections in Maharashtra and Jharkhand occurring after recent elections in Haryana and Jammu and Kashmir.

Affiliated with the INDIA coalition, Bharti expressed confidence in the alliance’s success in upcoming Assembly elections and by-polls. Additionally, she condemned derogatory comments made by Shiv Sena (UBT) MP Arvind Sawant against a candidate from Eknath Shinde’s faction, asserting that “no offensive remarks should be made about a woman, even if she is a rival.”

Furthermore, she criticised inflammatory statements from Union Minister Giriraj Singh during the Hindu Swabhiman Yatra, saying it is “appalling” that a Union Minister could incite violence without facing repercussions.

Bharti also raised concerns about the BJP’s silence regarding a new political outfit formed by former Union Minister RCP Singh, who had transitioned to the BJP after being ousted from Nitish Kumar’s JD(U).

She took issue with Prashant Kishor, the Jan Suraaj founder, for making commitments that he never asked BJP and Nitish Kumar to fulfill while he was managing their campaign.

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India condemns Canada’s allegations against Amit Shah, calls it baseless

“Such irresponsible actions will have serious consequences for bilateral ties,” said the MEA.

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India on Saturday condemned the recent allegations made by the Canadian government against Amit Shah that he was purportedly involved in the killing of Khalistani terrorist Hardeep Singh Nijjar, calling it absurd and baseless.

Addressing a press conference, Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said that India had summoned the Canadian High Commissioner yesterday to protest in the strongest terms for the references made to the Union Home Minister of India before the Committee by Canada’s Deputy Foreign Affairs Minister David Morrison.

On Tuesday, Morrison claimed that Shah orchestrated a campaign of violence, intimidation, and intelligence-gathering aimed at Sikh separatists on Canadian soil. He informed members of Canada’s national security committee in Parliament that he had confirmed Shah’s name to The Washington Post, which was the first to report the allegations. However, Morrison did not provide details on how Canada became aware of Shah’s alleged involvement.

Jaiswal said the revelation that high Canadian officials deliberately leak unfounded insinuations to the international media as part of a conscious strategy to discredit India and influence other nations only confirms the view that the government of India has long held about the current Canadian government’s political agenda and behavioural pattern.

“Such irresponsible actions will have serious consequences for bilateral ties,” said the MEA.

On the reports of a cancelled Diwali celebration, Jaiswal said, “We have seen some reports in this regard. It is unfortunate that the prevailing atmosphere in Canada has reached high levels of intolerance and extremism.”

He also spoke on the reduction in the number of Visas by the Canadian government and said the ministry has been monitoring the well-being of Indian students and professionals who are working in Canada. “Our concern for their safety and security remains strong,” he added.

The Ministry of External Affairs said some of its Consular officials were recently informed by the Canadian government that they have been and continue to be under audio and video surveillance as well as their communications have also been intercepted. “We have formally protested to the Canadian Government as we deem these actions to be a flagrant violation of relevant diplomatic and consular conventions,” the Ministry said.

By citing technicalities, the Canadian government cannot justify the fact that it is indulging in harassment and intimidation, Jaiswal said, adding that India’s diplomatic and consular personnel have already been functioning in an environment of extremism and violence.

He said such action of the Canadian government aggravates the situation and is incompatible with established diplomatic norms and practices.

Regarding the sanction of 19 Indian companies, Jaiswal noted that India has a robust legal and regulatory framework on strategic trade and non-proliferation controls.

India is also a member of three key multilateral non-proliferation export control regimes – the Vasinar Arrangement, the Australia Group and the Missile Technology Control Regime, and has been effectively implementing relevant UNSC sanctions and UNSC Resolution 1540 on non-proliferation, he added.

“Our understanding is that the sanction, transactions and companies are not in violation of Indian laws. Nevertheless, in keeping with India’s established non-proliferation credentials, we are working with all the relevant Indian departments and agencies to sensitize Indian companies on applicable export control provisions and also inform them of new measures being implemented that could impact Indian companies in certain circumstances,” the MEA said.

Regarding deportations from the United States, Jaiswal noted, “We have a consistent dialogue with the United States concerning migration and mobility, aimed at establishing more avenues for legal migration. As part of our ongoing consular arrangements, we have facilitated the movement of individuals who are residing in the United States illegally. This collaboration has been in effect for some time, and we anticipate that through our engagement with the United States on mobility and migration, we can work to deter illegal immigration.”

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