21 February,2017 08:40 AM IST | | Vinay Dalvi
The Bombay High Court on Monday, rejected actress Monica Bedi's application for directing the passport authorities in MP to renew her passport. However, the court admitted her appeal challenging a 1993 notification that said if there was an appeal pending, passport can be issued for a year and cannot be renewed afterwards
Monica Bedi
The Bombay High Court on Monday rejected actress Monica Bedi's application for directing the passport authorities in MP to renew her passport. However, the court admitted her appeal challenging a 1993 notification that said if there was an appeal pending, passport can be issued for a year and cannot be renewed afterwards.
Monica, who was extradited in 2005 along with gangster Abu Salem, was booked the same year for submitting forged documents to procure a passport and was sentenced to five years in jail. In 2007, she was released on bail, pending appeal. In 2010, the apex court, while upholding her conviction, reduced her sentence to time served.
Since then Bedi has filed application for re-issuance of her passport. Her form has been accepted but, till date, there has been no communication. Her lawyer Nitin Pradhan said no order had been passed about rejecting her application.
He also told the court that as per rules, passport application cannot be granted if she has been convicted five years prior to filing of the application. The bench, comprising Justices Abhay Oka and Anuja Pradbhudesai, said it was not possible to issue such directions to passport authorities to renew her passport.
