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Gujarat Police has simplified the passport police verification process by limiting checks to an applicant’s citizenship and criminal antecedents while doing away with the requirement for applicants to visit police stations, the state government said on Tuesday.
According to the official statement, director general of police GS Malik has directed all police stations and officers to simplify the passport police verification process, making it more transparent and citizen-friendly.
Applicants will no longer be required to visit police stations for passport police verification. Police will examine only an applicant’s citizenship and criminal antecedents and will not separately verify the applicant’s residential address, meet the applicant in person or obtain the applicant’s signature during the verification process.
Police officials will visit an applicant’s residence only in exceptional cases where they find suspicious circumstances or consider further inquiry necessary, the statement said. Even in such cases, applicants will not be required to visit the police station.
A senior police official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said an applicant’s citizenship and criminal antecedents would be examined in accordance with the Ministry of External Affairs guidelines. Police would scrutinise the applicant’s records and supporting documents and, wherever required, carry out background checks, including verification of educational and other details, before submitting their report.
An official familiar with the Passport Seva process said police examine the records and supporting documents submitted by an applicant, including documents such as a birth certificate, voter ID, Aadhaar, PAN and other records available through government databases, while verifying the particulars furnished in the application and checking criminal antecedents.
Another official aware of the Passport Seva process said police verify an applicant’s records and supporting documents, including Aadhaar, PAN, proof of date of birth and proof of address, against available government records and databases before submitting a verification report. The final decision on whether an applicant has established Indian citizenship and is eligible for a passport rests with the Regional Passport Office, the official added.
The government statement said Malik directed all police officers to strictly comply with the revised procedure and appealed to citizens to be aware of the simplified process and avoid unnecessary visits or other avoidable formalities during passport police verification.
An official at the Regional Passport Office in Ahmedabad did not respond to calls seeking comment.
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