Stateless woman gets travel doc with 10-year validity for foreign trips

Mumbai: The Ministry of Foreign Affairs issued a travel document, similar to a passport to 67-year-old Ila Popat last month

Mumbai: The Ministry of Foreign Affairs issued a travel document, similar to a passport to 67-year-old Ila Popat last month. She was deemed stateless by the Indian government as she did not have a Ugandan passport and hence could not prove her citizenship.

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The document will now allow Ila to undertake foreign trips that she forgave since arriving in India on her mother’s passport in 1966. Though the family would want Ilaben (Ila) and her husband Jatin Popat to undertake a foreign trip, they will do so only after fulfilling social and familial commitments in the coming months. They however do plan to go abroad in January 2023.

Ila, who is a mother and grandmother of children who are bonafide citizens of India, approached the Bombay high court (HC) through advocate Aditya Chitale.

The HC bench headed by justice SV Gangapurwala had directed the MFA and Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) to look into the issue in July. Thereafter, in August-September, the MEA informed the bench that it would follow procedure and would issue her a travel document, which would permit her to travel abroad, however, the issue of citizenship would have to be taken up with the relevant Ministry of Home Affairs.

“Our Diwali celebrations had doubled after receiving the travel document which has a validity of ten years,” said Jatin Popat, husband of Ilaben.

He added that the agony of his wife being stateless had reduced considerably after receiving the document but travel plans would be only scheduled in January.

“We have gained ground in our effort to get formal recognition as a citizen of India for Ila,” said Jatin. The next hearing of the petition according to Chitale is on December 2 and MHA will be added as a party by then.

Popat was born in Uganda to parents of Indian origin who had held British passports. She and her brother had travelled to India on her mother’s passport in 1966 and she had been living here since then. Popat in 2019, filed an online application for Indian citizenship on the advice of the regional passport authority, but mistakenly mentioned that she had a valid visa, which was not the case. Her application was rejected.

The MEA had assured the HC that the woman could be offered citizenship if she furnished a foreign passport and that she could get it with the help of the Ugandan embassy. The bench was also told that the woman’s application for a British passport had been rejected by the British embassy for the want of proper documents.

As per the petition, Popat, in 1977 got married to an Indian citizen. She applied for an Indian passport in 1997, 2008, and 2015. However, it was only in 2015 that she was advised by the regional passport authority to apply for Indian citizenship.