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Jokingjustice

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March 29, 2025



REVISED PASSPORT




A consumer court in Haripur has ordered issuance of a revised passport with correct credentials to the complainant free of any fee. The lady complained that her name was written wrong in the newly issued passport and rectification, the rectification fee was being demanded while it was the mistake of the Department.



2. While since two three days under so deep depression hearing whole day updates on the coverage of the Islamabad High Court on the disappearance of Umer Cheema’s two brothers. Reading this news from a lower court from the remote Haripur gives an assurance that still there is a hope at the end of the dark tunnel.



3. My late father was a typical clerk of British rule. When my child was born in 1990, instead of giving her one single name he adopted, a name of the new born added with my three names. Thus the new born’s name became of four digits in the hospital and the birth certificate. Her name was endorsed on the mother’s passport.



4. When mother’s passport expired I thought it fit to get child’s independent passport and child’s name shortened suiting to today’s social norms. Before applying for the passport, knowing well the legal requirements, I got child’s name shortened from the NADRA and applied accordingly new passport with new name (shortened name).



5. The Embassy in addition to the normal fee for the new passport, asked additional fee for the deletion of child’s name from the mother’s expiring passport. I told them no deletion was being affected as mother’s passport had already expired and a new independent and the first-one for the child was being applied. The Embassy, as is usual, refused to listen this argument. I paid this deletion fee as it was of no sense to keep arguing.



6. On collection of the new passport, I found child’s name in it still the same old four digits. When I pointed it out, seeing my cheap clothes and appearance I was told that the official procedure was to follow what was written in the old passport. Seeing my persistent, the official then took passport from my hand and with the black pen blackened two digits. When I pointed out that when this passport would be presented abroad, the Immigration Officer there forthwith arrest on charge of fraud. After this, this pen-made deletion was stamped with the Embassy stamp.



7. Early 1990s time was still to some extent good for the street commoner and the Federal Ombudsman system had not yet started decline. I approached the Federal Ombudsman who ordered for issuance of a new passport free of cost with credentials as entered in the new application Form and refund the deletion fee illegally charged. The Federal Ombudsman observed since the mother’s passport had already expired, no work was to be done on that, no deletion process was involved.



8. From how many thousands and since how many decades such deletion fees was being charged illegally, is not a point here.



9. I got a letter from the Embassy in connection with refund of illegally charged deletion fees. Embassy had a problem in refunding in cash a small amount. As the amount was insignifant, I had no real interest in its refund but, as late S.M. Zafar more than once admired me in writing for my spirit of struggling single handed against any injustice, I had initiated the complained issue. Realizing the problem was genuine I endorsed on the Embassy file the amount having been settled.



10. About three years later, the Charge d Affaires phoned me asking to return the passport with wrong name of the child. Preserving the Passport old or new is the sole responsibility of the passport holder and the issuing authority can’t take it back unless in writing, My returning back passport was in no case appropriate as misuse of a passport is a general international phenomena. Later two three senior community elders approached me to return the passport as the Audit Team was coming. I told them passport was in locker in Pakistan.



11. Later I submitted to the Federal Ombudsman that cost of copy of passport copy wasted should be deducted from the salary of the erring officer not to be paid by the “people”. I got a communication matter was being looked after what happened finally, I am not aware.



12. The fee for a new passport is Rs. 5,500. I wonder instead of burdening this amount, why she preferred to go to a court where she must had to fire a black coat with not less than a twenty to thirty thousands. May be this old unaware if the consumer courts are free where there is no need of hiring a black coat and one can just with a simple single page application could personally appear and be heard.
 

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