UNION OF INDIA versus BAHAREH BAKSHI

Citation: [2024] 8 S.C.R. 820 · Decided: 22-08-2024 · Supreme Court of India · Bench: HRISHIKESH ROY, SUDHANSHU DHULIA, SARASA VENKATANARAYANA BHATTI · Disposal: Appeal(s) allowed
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Judgment (excerpt)

[2024] 8 S.C.R. 820 : 2024 INSC 646
Union of India 
v. 
Bahareh Bakshi
(Civil Appeal No(S).4887-4888/2024)
22 August 2024
[Hrishikesh Roy, Sudhanshu Dhulia and S.V.N. Bhatti, JJ.]
Issue for Consideration
Issue arose as regards to the presence of the estranged husband, 
if mandatory to process an application by the wife-foreign spouse 
of a citizen of India for overseas Citizen of India Card, u/s.7-A of 
the Citizenship Act, 1955.
Headnotes†
Citizenship Act,1955 – s.7A(1) – Registration of Overseas 
Citizen of India Cardholder – Application for Overseas  
Citizen of India (OCI) Card by wife-foreign spouse of a citizen 
of India – Presence of the estranged husband, if mandatory 
to process the application u/s.7A:
Held: Presence of the spouse of the applicant either physically or 
through the virtual mode is mandatory for effective consideration 
of the application for an OCI Card – Central Government  
is empowered to register the foreign spouse of a citizen of India 
as an OCI holder subject to such conditions, restrictions and 
manner as may be prescribed – Prior security clearance’ by the  
competent authority for eligibility is also required – Act 
clearly allows for supplementary procedures, such as an 
personal interview of the foreign applicant and his/her spouse 
separately as specified in the Visa Manual as well as the  
Checklist – In the absence of any challenge to the visa manual or 
the checklist, and ignoring the procedure in place, the High Court 
erred in granting the relief of dispensing with the requirement of 
physical/virtual presence of the spouse as also was unjustified 
in holding that mandating the physical presence of the husband 
is arbitrary – Having considered the process for verifying the 
genuineness, the direction issued in the impugned judgment to 
dispense with the presence of the applicant’s spouse, has no legal 
basis – Moreover, apart from the physical/virtual presence of the 
spouse other conditions are also to be satisfied by an applicant 
[2024] 8 S.C.R. 
821
Union of India v. Bahareh Bakshi
as is provided under the Act, the checklist and the Visa Manual 
for which even a declaration by the husband may be necessary – 
Impugned judgments of the Single Judge and the Division Bench 
of the High Court unsustainable and set aside. [Paras 14-18]
List of Acts
Citizenship Act, 1955; Visa Manual, 2021; Code of Criminal 
Procedure, 1973.
List of Keywords
Overseas Citizen of India; OCI holder; Application for OCI Card; Prior 
security clearance; Checklist issued for verification of applications 
seeking OCI category card; Presence of couple; Presence of the 
estranged husband; Personal interview; Genuineness of the marital 
status; Supplementary procedures; Interview; Visa Manual as well 
as Checklist; Dispensing with the requirement of physical/virtual 
presence of the spouse; Special circumstance.
Case Arising From
CIVIL APPELLATE JURISDICTION: Civil Appeal Nos. 4887-4888 
of 2024
From the Judgment and Order dated 25.03.2022 and 22.07.2021 of 
the High Court of Delhi at New Delhi in LPA NO. 225 of 2022 and 
WP(C) No. 10807 of 2020 respectively
Appearances for Parties
Mrs. Aishwarya Bhati, A.S.G., B K Satija, Merusagar Samantaray, 
Mrs. Savita Singh, Ishaan Sharma, Parantap Singh, Mriyank Pathak, 
Arvind Kumar Sharma, Akshja Singh, Advs. for the Appellant.
Ankur Mahindro, Rohan Taneja, Mohit Dagar, Aditya Kapur, Soumil 
Gonsalves, Ankush Satija, Rohit Bishnoi, Ms. Vaishali S, Ms. 
Shubhangi Jain, Ms. Sugandha Anand, Advs. for the Respondent.
Judgment / Order of the Supreme Court
Judgment
1.	
Heard Ms. Aishwarya Bhati, learned Additional Solicitor General 
appearing for the appellant – Union of India. Also heard Mr. Ankur 
Mahindro, learned counsel appearing for the respondent. 
822
[2024] 8 S.C.R.
Digital Supreme Court Reports
2.	
The consideration to be made in this matter is whether the presence 
of the estranged husband is mandatory to process an application 
for Overseas Citizen of India (OCI) Card, under Section 7-A of 
the Citizenship Act, 1955. The respondent had filed the WP(C) 
No.10807/2020 in the High Court of Delhi for dispensing with the 
presence of the husband of the respondent. The learned Single 
Judge dispensed with the presence of the husband of respondent 
and this view was affirmed by the learned Division Bench under the 
impugned order dated 25.03.2022. Hence the Civil Appeal at the 
instance of Union of India. 
3.	
In the Writ Petition, the respondent claimed that s
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