E-Paper
Entrepreneur calls Indian passport ‘useless’: ‘I pay 75L-1Cr tax, zero advantage’
Hyderabad-based Jitendra Emmani shared an X post calling the Indian passport “absolutely useless”.
Prefer HTon Google
An Indian entrepreneur has ranted against the country’s weak passport, saying it provides no benefits and allows little free movement. Jitendra Emmani shared an X post calling the Indian passport “absolutely useless”.
Emmani, the Hyderabad-based founder of CozyFarms.in, highlighted how the Indian passport does not allow travel to most countries without a visa. And these visas, he noted, often require extensive documentation.
(Also read: ‘Most of the world opened up’: Founder on switching from Indian to Australian passport)
“Absolutely useless” passport
“Our Passport is absolutely useless,” Jitendra Emmani declared in an X post shared yesterday.
To prove his assertion, he added: “Can’t go anywhere good without waiting for days for the Visa or submitting a thousand pages.”
Emmani conceded that getting a United States visa stamp on an Indian passport is one way to ensure that the holder can travel more freely. However, a US visa stamp is itself very tough to get.
Emmani, who holds a master’s degree from USA’s Northern Illinois University, wrote: “A valid US visa is the shortcut many use. Why do we need a US stamp to let an Indian Passport let in anywhere.”
No benefits of high taxation
He further claimed that a weak passport is the reason why many Indians want to get citizenship to other countries by saying “No wonder so many Indians are chasing other passports.”
The Hyderabad-based entrepreneur highlighted how India’s high taxation has brought him no tangible travel benefits. He claimed to pay between ₹75 lakh to 1 crore as direct and indirect tax every year.
“I pay almost 75L - 1 Cr in taxes directly and indirectly a year and have zero advantages both locally or internationally,” Emmani wrote on X. “We need to start fixing our country’s situation and stop blaming the past for few more decades,” he concluded.
(Also read: ‘Having an Indian passport is sad’: Founder after being grilled over hotels, cash, return ticket in Timor Leste)
How the internet reacted
His post has been going viral with over 1.8 lakh views on the Elon Musk-owned social media platform.
“A passport should reflect the strength and trust of the country behind it. Indians contribute significantly through taxes, business and the economy, yet international mobility remains unnecessarily difficult,” one person said in the comments section.
(Also read: ‘Indian passport no longer adds value to my life’: Techie describes Schengen struggles)
“Most countries will ultimately refuse any entry with an Indian passport. The world’s recent collective experience with Indians has been an absolute disaster,” another opined.
“I don't see it changing in the near future. Especially Schengen visa, and even US visa has gotten very stringent too,” a user added in the comments section.
