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Last month, a senior official of the Ministry of External Affairs was quoted by the media as saying that the passports the department issues every day are only travel documents. Apparently, the passport does not constitute proof of Indian citizenship. This revelation has set the proverbial cat among the pigeons, when crores of people are being asked to prove that they are eligible to vote in the parliamentary and state assembly elections.

Even though less than 10% of the citizens of India hold passports, those who have it do not own it, despite paying through their nose for it, as every passport is boldly marked: “This passport is the property of the Government of India.” Section 17 of The Passports Act, 1967 states, ” A passport or travel document issued under this Act shall in all times remain the property of the central government.”

Since last year, the Election Commission of India (ECI), which has been conducting the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in various phases, has categorically stated that an Elector’s Photo Identity Card (EPIC) is also not conclusive proof of Indian citizenship.

Also read: The Indian Passport Cannot Be Reduced to Just a Travel Document

Further, the document issued in multiple avatars or downloadable from the UIDAI website which contains one’s Aadhaar number also clearly states, “Aadhaar is proof of identity, not citizenship or date of birth.”

Section 9 of the Aadhaar (Delivery of Financial and Other Subsidies, Benefits and Services) Act, 2016 says, “The Aadhaar number or the authentication thereof shall not, by itself, confer any right of, or be proof of, citizenship or domicile in respect of an Aadhaar number holder.”

Although Aadhaar was allowed by the Supreme Court of India as the 12th document that may be produced as the evidence of the identity and proof of address of an individual seeking enumeration under the SIR, it is certainly not proof of citizenship even though almost the entire citizenry is numbered and databased under Aadhaar.

The RTI interventions

As a person seeking to comply with the SIR enumeration requirements for oneself and one’s........

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