Centre defends rejecting Adnan’s plea

The Centre has defended its refusal of permission to Pakistani singer Adnan Sami to purchase a property in the Capital, citing “strategic reasons”.

The Centre has defended its refusal of permission to Pakistani singer Adnan Sami to purchase a property in the Capital, citing “strategic reasons”.

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Sami had approached the court in November 2012 seeking clearance to purchase a property in Delhi. He wanted the court to strike down a Reserve Bank of India circular that prohibits people of certain nationalities, including Pakistanis, from buying immovable property in India without its permission.

“The requirement of prior permission is guided by strategic concerns. At least five properties that Sami had bought in Mumbai have already been confiscated for Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA) violations,” Centre’s standing counsel Sumeet Pushkarna told the court.

Justice Rajiv Shakhder has now asked the RBI to take a stand and file an affidavit on the issue by July 16, the next date of hearing.

“I have been a resident of India for the past 13 years and have even sung a World Cup Cricket song for the Indian team. I am a professional artist and therefore qualified to buy a property in this country,” Sami’s petition said.

Acquisition of immovable property in India by a person residing outside India (foreign national) is regulated in terms of provisions of the Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA), 1999.