Women don’t need husband’s consent orsign for passport: HC

AAdult female does non demand her hubby’s consent and theme song to apply for a passport and insisting on the same is an instance of “male supremacism”, the Madras high court has said disposing of a petition filed by a woman who sought directions to authorities to issue her a fresh passport. Saying that the insistence by the Regional Passport Office (RPO) that the woman get her estranged husband’s permission for issuance of a passport was “shocking”, the bench of justice N Anand Venkatesh said it shows the “mindset of the society in treating woman who are married as if they are chattel belonging to the husband”.The woman, Revathy, moved the court saying that she applied for a passport in April, but her application was not processed and the petitioner was informed that she must obtain the signature of her husband in Form-J and only thereafter, the application will be processed by the Chennai RPO.The petitioner got married in 2023 and there was a matrimonial dispute between the parties which resulted in her husband filing a petition before a local court, seeking for the dissolution of the marriage. This petition was pending.The RPO also took the pending dispute into consideration, following which she filed the present petition.In his order, the judge said that in the considered view of this court, the application submitted by the petitioner seeking a passport has to be processed independently.“It is not necessary for a wife to get the permission of her husband and take his signature before applying for a passport before the authority,” the judge said in the June 18 order.“This insistence made by the 2nd respondent (the RPO) shows the mindset of the society in treating woman who are married as if they are chattel belonging to the husband. It is quite shocking that the passport office is insisting for the permission of the husband and his signature in a particular form in order to process the application submitted by the petitioner for passport,” the court said. The judge said the petitioner after marriage does not lose her individuality and a wife can always apply for a passport without the permission or signature of the husband in any form. “It is quite shocking that the passport office is insisting for the permission of the husband and his signature in a particular form in order to process the application submitted by the petitioner for passport,” the court said. It noted that it was not possible for the petitioner woman to obtain her husband’s signature on the application in view of the strained relationship between them, the judge said, the RPO was insisting the woman “fulfill an impossibility”. “The practice of insisting for permission from the husband to apply for passport, does not augur well for a society which is moving towards emancipation. This practice is nothing short of male supremacism,” the court said.The judge directed the RPO to process the application submitted by the petitioner and issue a passport in her name on her satisfying the other requirements.This process shall be completed within four weeks, the judge added.